


Treasure Hunt

by Blondfirefly



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Action/Adventure, Adventure, Adventure & Romance, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Drama, Eventual Romance, F/M, Hogwarts, Hogwarts Eighth Year, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-22
Updated: 2018-10-22
Packaged: 2019-08-06 01:54:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 21,340
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16379153
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Blondfirefly/pseuds/Blondfirefly
Summary: To defeat fear, Wizarding Schools are holding a tri-wizards tournament. Three finalists are chosen from each school, with the Hogwarts trio being the most unusual. What happens when new friendships are born, new feelings arise, and hearts are broken?An eighth year Dramione fanfiction.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Heyhoo! I'm back with another Dramione yumminess for ya'll! I write on my phone- without planning, and i don't have an alpha or a beta, so please ignore my typos! Now onto the first chapter of Treasure Hunt!

* * *

 

**Treasure Hunt**

**Chapter One**

* * *

 

Hermione watched the first years with a lump in her throat. So innocent, so pure. She could see herself, Harry, Ron, and Neville, and so many other people among them. She could see Fred among the group of students laughing at something one of them had said. She could see Professor Snape sneering from his seat at the table. And sometimes, she could even see Lavender giggling next to Parvati.

This was a daily occurrence. She had come back to Hogwarts to complete her seventh year, and so had many others. Luna, Ginny, Padma, Neville- most of them. What had shocked her the most was the return of Draco Malfoy. But it was like he didn't even exist. No students acknowledged him, probably due to the aura he had around him. She hadn't heard him speak. Not even once. He came to classes, took down notes, and left. The professors never bothered him with any questions, and neither did he.

Yes, she had watched him quite closely over the first week, but now she didn't, not because she didn't want to- because she loved studying, but because he seemed to be noticing. He would shift under her gaze until she'd turn her head around, and then she'd feel goosebumps erect on the nape of her neck, because that's how intense his stare would be.

And so she had stopped.

Right now as she's walking towards the great hall, she skids to a halt right at the entrance when someone else walks up at the same time. She looks up and finds the most startling grey eyes looking at her through an invisible wall.  _Like always_ , she thinks.

Malfoy clenches his jaw, and gives her the barest of nods. She nods back and steps into the great hall, her back stiff. She can tell he's watching her. And she hates it when he does.

"Good Morning, children" Professor McGonagall begins to speak.

"Today, I'm very pleased to say that we have completed three weeks of this term without a single student having to serve any kind of detention.

I'm very proud of you all. Each and every one of you.

In the last meeting of Magical Congregation, the French Minister came up with the idea of leading our students towards normalcy, and eradicating fear. The idea was put forward due to the fact that in the last Tri wizards tournament, an unforgettable, and unfortunate event took place. An event that spikes fear in our hearts.

So to defeat fear and it's likes, the Ministries have come up with the idea of a Tri Wizards Cup this year."

Several goblets could be heard slipping, and muttering ensued in the great hall.

"Silence"

Once everybody was quiet again, she continued,

"First of all, six witches or wizards will be chosen today, at the very moment from our Seventh Year students. Those six will compete with each other, and finally a trio will be chosen. Three finalists from Hogwarts will be chosen for this tournament. "

"Those three will be known as the Hogwarts Trio, and will compete with the Dumstrang Trio and the Beauxbatons Trio. The winning Trio will be given special rewards from their school.

There is no criteria for the choosing- Mr. Finch-Fletchy, please place your goblet on the table."

Hermione sees Justin lower his goblet to the table, his face showing the panic he was feeling.

" Participants will be chosen after dinner. Dive in" McGonagall snapped her fingers and the dishes appeared.

Hermione saw Ron sitting across from her, munching on a drumstick. She let out a sigh.

"Everything okay, Hermione?" Ginny slid in beside her.

Hermione licked her lips.

" Yeah"

"What do you think?" She asks.

" About what"?

" This tournament. Because I bet on my life that you're in it" Ginny smiles at her.

Hermione smiles back, her eyes falling on the blonde. "I don't know," she says with an exhale as the blond looks up and catches her stare.

She looks around, mortified at being caught- again, and pretends that nothing happened.

Professor McGonagall steps up again, and the hall falls silent. She smiles gratefully at them before clearing her throat.

"Are all seventh years present"? She asks.

"Yes" reply the most of them- except Malfoy.

" Good. As you already know, six students will be chosen. So, I'd like the portrait of Professor Severus Snape to choose the first two participants of this tournament"

The veil was lifted from his portrait, and without any other words, he spoke, "Theodore Nott, and Pansy Parkinson"

 _Typical Snape_ Hermione thinks. But she's a bit shocked to realise that he hadn't chosen Malfoy. She turns her gaze towards the Slytherin table, and finds him already looking at her, his eyebrows hiked as if he knew she'd look at him. And then he raises another brow, gesturing her towards McGonagall. She looks back and finds all eyes on her.

" You've been selected, Hermione! " Ginny squeals beside her and hugs her side.

McGonagall clears her throat and continues, "Luna Lovegood, and Ginerva Weasley"

Hermione hugs Ginny to her side, as the redhead gets overexcited and begins to swear. " Oh fuck! I'm selected! Me?  _Me?_ I need to write a  _bloody_  letter!"

Hermione places her hand over her mouth to shut her up, and her gaze lands on the blond again. He's staring at the table- he does that a lot, his gaze unfocused and unmoving. She swallows and turns towards McGonagall, again.

"The final candidate chosen is going to be very special, because it's going to be chosen by the portrait of Professor Albus Dumbledore. "

The hall erupts into applauds and whistles as the portrait is brought forth.

" Good morning, children" he greets and several people dab their eyes to rid themselves of the tears that come from hearing his voice in the Great Hall again.

" I hope you're all well. Congratulations to you all on being present today. I won't talk much, I'd just like to say that  _we_ are no better than others if we don't love each other, if we don't forgive each other. Forgive and forget; that's the key to happiness." His blue eyes twinkle.

" The person that I've chosen for this task is a boy. A wizard. Someone who had to do some things because he had no control over them" Hermione turns her head towards the blond, and he's watching the portrait with a curious look in his eyes.

" Because he had no choice. I believe in him, because I've seen the good in his heart. He deserves another chance."

Hermione's inhale is sharp through her nose because she knows who it is. Because she hopes that it is who she thinks it is.

And it is.

" Draco Malfoy "

And she jumps, her fist pausing in the air as she realises that all eyes are on her. Even  _his._ She bites her lip "A fly was buzzing around me" she explains, and sits back down, her embarrassment crawling up her cheeks. Malfoy is still looking at her and she gives him her best serious face. The corner of his mouth twitches and she almost doesn't believe it.

" Draco Malfoy it is" McGonagall repeats, but the hall is silent. No applause, no whistles, except for Theodore Nott who applauds once and then claps a hand on Malfoy's back. And he is still watching her.

She looks away because she knows she isn't good at hiding emotion. But that's also a mistake because now she's facing a curious Ginny Weasley.

" What? " She tries to sound nonchalant.

Ginny cocks her head to one side.  
"There was no fly, Hermione"

Hermione blushes in spite of herself, and Ginny's lips tug upwards into a tiny smirk.

She places a hand on Hermione's arm, and whispers, " He's hot, isn't he?"

Hermione slaps her hand away, but her lips are stretched into a stupid smile that had threatened to break her jaw if she hadn't let it out.

* * *

She was waiting in McGonagall's office, her eyes falling shut every now and then. She raises her hand to cover her mouth as a yawn passes. She sighs, and her head snaps up when she feels another presence in the room.

She looks up and finds Malfoy casually walking towards the seat opposite hers. She swallows and turns her head, because she really doesn't want to be alone with Malfoy in a room. Because she doesn't want him to open his mouth, and ruin the calm and gentle image of him that she has in her head.

But she can't help it, and her eyes analyse him from toe to head. He looks at her, an unreadable expression on his face, and then turns around, completely normal.

She clears her throat and then curses herself for it, because he might think it was a way to gain attention, or worse, start a conversation.

There is a knock on the door, and Ginny, Luna, Nott, and a very red looking Parkinson enter. She glances between the redhead and the blonde, raising her brows in a silent question.

Ginny falls into the chair beside her own and turns her head to whisper in her ear.

"Caught Parkinson and Nott in a broom closet. Want to know what they were doing?"

Hermione raises her brows even more, her lips threatening to break into a grin. " No thanks, Ginny" she replies smoothly.

Someone clears their throat, and they all turn their heads to see McGonagall enter her office.

"Good Afternoon, children. I guess I'm late" she smiles politely at them before taking a seat behind her desk.

"First of all, congratulations to all of you on being selected. Believe me, this wasn't a quick decision. Me and all the professors took every detail into account before choosing the six of you. Anyways, the competition between you all will begin from next week, and the actual tournament will begin after a month, in which only three from you six will participate"

Hermione inhales sharply through her nose, and all eyes turn towards her; knowing that she had probably said a prayer for her to be one of the three. A blush crawls up her cheeks, but she can't help but feel a little proud to be the reason behind the amusement that dances behind Malfoy's stone-dead eyes.

She shakes her head, and looks away.

" First task will take place on Sunday, and it will be between Ms. Granger and Ms. Parkinson. The second will be on Tuesday, between Mr. Nott and Ms. Lovegood. And finally, between Mr. Malfoy and Ms. Weasley on Thursday. The winners of these tasks will be chosen for the tournament, and will be the Hogwarts Trio... Your schedules, along with a list of do's and don'ts will be delivered to your common rooms by night. Have a good day"

Hermione stands up, and thanks the Headmistress before exiting her office. She turns around to look for Ginny, but instead her gaze meet his as he looks at her. She holds her breath, her eyes shinning because she isn't even blinking. And then he's shoving his hands in his pockets, and turning around to walk towards the dungeons. And then he's gone.

"Merlin woman! You're quic- what happened?" Ginny asks.

Hermione shakes her head, her curls bouncing on her shoulders. " Nothing. Let's go"

Once in the common room, Ginny pushes Hermione onto the couch, ad plops down beside her, her elbows propped up on her knees, and her face resting in her hands.

"So, what do you think it is?" She asks.  
Hermione chews on her lower lip, wondering what the redhead was talking about.

" The task, Hermione"

Right.

"I don't know." She whispers.

Ginny raises her eyebrows, pulls away, and then grabs her shoulders.

" You don't know. You don't know" she shakes her.

Hermione laughs, "I mean I don't know for sure, but we do have-"

"The library" Ginny finishes for her, and she nods.

"Library? Seriously, Hermione? What are we going to find there?"

" Oh, we won't be finding anything, but once we receive our tasks tonight, I'm going there" she grins.

Ginny smacks her forehead.  
" Merlin help you! " and she laughs.

" What's up with Malfoy? "

And her heart picks up pace at some silly reason that flies over her head.

" What?" She asks, trying to sound as uninterested as possible.

"He seems...I dont know...different almost"

" War changes people. Nobody comes out unscathed" she shrugs.

" Yes, but he's still the same. I mean...kind of..you know...he still has that  _I'm a Malfoy, you're a cockroach_  kind of look" she grimaces.

Hermione giggles. " Cockroach? "

" Yeah...bugs, centipedes or milipeddes.." she pretends to gag.

"You're thinking too much into it. I agree...he has changed, but nothing too drastic that he'd show on the outside. His change was inside. In his heart"

And then silence blooms as Ginny gets the point.

* * *

"Ready to loose, Granger?" Hermione's head snaps up at the voice, her eyes narrowing.

" I assure you, Parkinson, I have no intention of losing" she replies haughtily.

" Oh? But you will" she sneers at her.

Hermione snorts, "Let's act like grownups and let fate decide who's going to win, Mmm?"

Pansy stomps her foot, angrily, and turns towards the exit.

Hermione leans back in her chair, muttering about no peace even in the library, when someone clears their throat. She groans and looks up to find Nott standing in front of her.

She looks around, making sure that his counterpart isn't in sight, and raises an eyebrow.

" What's your task, Granger?" He plops down into the chair across from hers.

She raises her eyebrows as if to say do you really think I'm that stupid?

" Oh come on, I just want to know if it's the same as ours" he says.

" It's not the same" she sniffs.

"Now that wasn't so hard, was it, Granger? Thanks" he says and he's out.

Just like that.

He came here for that?

She stares into the empty seat across from her, and shakes her head.

* * *

"Shit, Hermione! How am I going to do all of this? And that too against Malfoy? No chance! No fucking chance!" Ginny is rambling, and by the way she suddenly stops, she knows it too.

"It's going to be fine, Gin! You're.. You're a fine chaser, and well,...he's a good enough seeker" her ears heat up at the look she receives from the redhead.

" Good enough you say, huh?" And all anxiousness just seems to evaporate from her. Hermione laughs. " You were saying something along the lines of 'I can't do this', continue please"

Ginny huffs a laugh and then throws herself back on the bed. "I have no hope"

"Completely hopeless"

"True"

"Touche"

* * *

" How is practice going, Luna?" Hermione slides into the empty space beside the blon- No, the Loo-... Luna, just Luna. The blond was someone else, entirely. Grey e-

" Good enough. Charms has always been my favourite subject" she tells her in the dreamy voice that is so Luna -ish.

" Even Nott was always good in charms" she muses.

Luna nods her head, slowly, and dreamily.

" Yes, Theo was at the top of the class after you, of course. "

And she blurts it out before can stop herself, "And Malfoy"

Luna looks at her, but her eyes are not accusing or searching or even anything, instead, they hold warmth.

" Yes. Draco Malfoy was right behind you. Just like now" she pointed behind her.

Hermione's breath catches in her throat as she turns and finds the blond taking a seat right behind her, next to Parkinson.

She looks away when Parkinson throws a dirty look her way, and excuses herself from Luna, before leaving the Great Hall, and waking towards the library.

Of course.

* * *

****3 October 1999, Sunday** **

"How are you so calm, Hermione?" Ginny whispers beside her.

"Layers" she replies.

The redhead gives her an incredulous look, and she elaborates.

" I have two layers. Outer layer and an inner layer. My outer self is calm, but my inner self is shaking and shivering"

Ginny shakes her head, a light chuckle escaping her.

" Tell your inner self to relax, because Mr. Oh Why So Hot is walking towards us" she whispers.

Hermione's head snaps up, her eyes widening for a second before narrowing as The Blond walks towards them.

She holds her breath when he's right in front of them. He looks at her, his eyes travelling between her and Ginny, and then he's walking away- hands shoved deep in his pockets, and hips almost swaying.

" What the fuck was that? " Ginny curses.

But Hermione is too busy trying to tell herself that it was nothing. Absolutely nothing. Malfoy is a slimy git. What else did she expect from him? A bloody good luck? He was probably-no, he was rooting for Parkinson. She tries to bury her disappointment somewhere deep within her, but it keeps emerging. What if Ginny hadn't been here? Would he have talked to her? She can't help but wonder how he'd sound. Because she wants to hear him. She's that desperate to hear it. His voice.

"That was his way of wishing good luck to Hermione" Luna came to stand next to them.

Hermione looks at her. " What?"

She smiles, her gaze focused on a random point at the wall. "His head was full of benedixies." She reasons.

And for once in her life, Hermione wants herself to believe in what she was saying.

Why?

She doesn't know.

* * *

"Good Afternoon, children. Please return to your seats and do not cross the boundary lines that have been laid out. Ms. Granger and Ms. Parkinson, would you both please step up"

The Gryffindors, Hufflepuffs, and Ravenclaws cheer for Hermione as she makes her way towards the centre of the room where four cauldrons are lined side by side, two with her name. She takes a deep breath, and her eyes are searching for him before she can stop herself. He isn't here.

Pansy steps up beside her, her face blank, and posture rigid. " You have three hours to brew the two potions listed on the sheets on your tables. Professor Slughorn will be checking them. Are you both ready?"

They nod their heads. Hermione too quickly, Pansy too stiffly.

"And your time starts...NOW!"

Hermione grabs the sheet from her table, her eyes scanning the potions.

Amortentia and Felix Felicis

Okay okay. She can do this. She has brewed them before.

She pulls the ingredient list for amortentia from a pile of other things which she thinks were placed to confuse them, and her eyes roam over the ingredients, and then she's crushing the moonstone to powder. She gathers everything she needs, her heart beating fast as she, very carefully, brings the ashwinder eggs and places them on the counter beside the first Cauldron.

She takes a deep breath, and gathers a spatula full of peppermint before dumping it into the Cauldron, and it roars to life. Purple sparks shoot up as she intensifies the fire at the bottom of it. She then adds a spoonful of the powdered moonstone, and that's when her eyes catch a flash of blonde.

Her breath hitches in her throat for an unknown reason as her eyes roam over his form. He's not wearing his robes today, just his white button up shirt, and his sleeves rolled up to his elbows. She turns her attention back to the potion, willing herself to stay calm, but it's hard when she sees his fist clenching tightly. She glances up, grey meeting brown, and he looks away, but his fist clenches even tighter. She thinks is just to distract her, until she realises that he's actually trying to help her.

Shit shit shit

She chants in her head as she grabs a fistful of Pearl Dust and adds it into the Cauldron. She breathes out shakily. How could she forget? One more minute and the potion would've failed. God!

And now she can't even concentrate properly because she can see him through her peripheral vision. Goosebumps erect on the side of her neck that's facing him, and she knows that he's watching her even before she glances to her side.

He shifts under her gaze and turns his head towards Nott, who is looking at Luna Lovegood. She lights fire underneath the other Cauldron and gathers all the ingredients for Felix Felicis.

~\

She's working, sweating, working, and sweating some more. She doesn't know how much time has passed or how much time is left, she's just working. Her Felix Felicis is ready, and only a last ingredient is left to be dropped into the other Cauldron and then her amortentia will be ready as well. Her gaze darts towards her left as the blond brings a sandwich to his mouth. She swallows when his eyes meet hers, eyebrows rising, and sh-

" Uh" she gasps as the rose thorns prick her fingertips. She curses herself for being so distracted, and then curses some more when she feels her heart telling her that the blond had winced too. She shakes her head, but his face and thoughts remain, and so she just carries on like everything is normal- when nothing is. She's at war with herself. Consta-

"30 minutes remaining" McGonagall's voice rings through the hall.

Hermione grabs the tongs and uses them to transfer the rose thorns into the amortentia. She stirs it clockwise, and then counterclockwise- twice, before she wipes her forehead with the back of her sleeves, and raises her hand.

" Complete "

And she's probably imagining it all in her head, but she thinks she just saw Nott pat Malfoy's shoulder as the blond's lips twitched.

Yes, she imagined it.

"Complete" Pansy raises her hand.

" Excellent excellent" McGonagall says as she steps down the few stairs, and walks towards them.

"Now since you both finished within the time limit, time won't be a judging factor. Professor Slughorn, if you'll please"

" Of course, of course" the round-belly man walks towards them.

"Let's start with Ms. Parkinson, shall we?... What do you have here Ms. Parkinson? "

Pansy clears her throat, "Amortentia and Felix Felicis"

" Ahh I see. Of course...of course. I'm the one who chose these two potions after all" he chuckles to himself and peeks into her cauldron, inhaling slightly.

His tongue darts out to wet his lips, and he moves towards Parkinson's second cauldron.

He nods his head. " Very well. Now, Ms. Granger"

"Professor" she greets him with a nod.

He smiles at her before examining her potions. She holds her breath as he opens his mouth to speak.

" Ms. Granger, please tell me what your amortentia smells like to you"

She leans over the cauldron, and frowns when the smell is... familiar...but not something she definitely knows.

She clears her throat, "Old books, parchment, rain...and...aftershave"

Slughorn looks at her with a smile on his face. " Excellent! "

" And Ms. Parkinson" he says her name like he knows something that they don't.

Pansy's face turns a bright shade of red, and she leans over her cauldron.

" Step down, Ms. Parkinson. Even you know you've created a mess. Merlin, why would you even lean over to inhale whatever toxic you've brewed"  
Slughorn shakes his head.

And Hermione holds her breath.

"The first person to qualify as a member of the Hogwarts Trio is...Hermione Granger" he announces.

The hall erupts into applauds and whistles and she's jumping before she can know what's happening. "Hermione! " Ginny yells as she runs towards her and envelopes her into a hug.

And when the adrenaline in her body dies down a bit, she glances around the hall to catch a glimpse of the blonde, but he isn't even in the Hall anymore.

She buries her disappointment deep in her heart, and embraces the still enthusiastic redhead- Ginny Weasley.

* * *

****5 October 1999, Tuesday** **

The Great Hall is in chaos when she enters. Hushed whispering reaches her ears, and a scream snaps her attention towards the centre of the hall. Her eyes widen as she sees Pansy Parkinson palming her extremely red cheek, and then her eyes land on a furious looking Ginny Weasley.

"Insult my best friend again, Parkinson, I dare you!" Ginny hisses.

Hermione elbows her way through the crowd, heat rising up her ears for an unknown reason. She reaches Ginny and sees that Parkinson is standing in the middle of two blokes. Nott and his counterpart. Hermione refuses to meet the counterpart's eyes, and grabs Ginny's arm.

" What are you doing, Gin?" She whispers harshly.

Ginny pulls her arm away, and glares at Parkinson one last time before storming out of the hall. Hermione swallows thickly, and glues her eyes to the floor, avoiding eye contact with everyone, and follows Ginny out of the Hall.

" Ginny! Ginny!" She yells after her.

Ginny pauses mid stride, and turns to look at her. Her face is red with rage and her nostrils flaring.

" Are you alright? " She asks.

Ginny scowls at her. " That bitch! Parkinson...She...She was saying shit about you!"

"That's nothing new, Gin. Although I have to admit that I expected her to be a bit more mature"

"That shit she was shitting was huge, Hermione!"

Hermione chuckles in spite of herself. "What kind of shit?"

"Let's go to the common room first"

~\

"THAT BITCH PARKINSON-"

"Gin, wait!" Hermione slams the door to the portrait hole shut, and jumps onto the couch beside Ginny.

" Yes, now speak" she says.

Ginny takes a deep breath, and Hermione prepares her ears for the worst.

" She fucking called you a slut" she hisses.

Hermione's ears relax and her eyes widen. Because this isn't something anybody would've said about her. Why wo-

"Why would she say that?" She asks.

Ginny shrugs a shoulder. " Said something about you eying other people's boyfriends"

And for a split second, her heart sinks. Because there's only one man she eyes. Were Malfoy and Parkinson...?

" Hermione" Ginny snaps her fingers in front of her face.

Hermione shakes her head, and cranes her neck to look at the redhead.

" So you just slapped her?" She asks with a smile.

And then Ginny is smirking.  
" I have something interesting to tell as well..." she trails off, a naughty glint in her blue eyes.

"What is it?" She asks, but she knows it wouldn't be so simple.

Ginny's smirk only widens.

"Ginerva Weasley, spit it out!"

Ginny chuckles and hops on the couch, facing Hermione, her legs tucked under her as she leans closer to Hermione. " When Parkinson called you a slut...Malfoy-"

"What?!" Hermione asks, suddenly breathless.

Ginny giggles like a teen, and continues, "Malfoy stopped her. Said something along the lines of Granger is a prude, but Mione, there was no bite in his tone! No sneer. No smirk."

Hermione tries to hide her smile, but she can feel her lips curving at the edges.

Come on Hermione, it's not like he defended you or something. He probably didn't want any drama

But her lips curve all the same.

"Hermione Granger, you're not eying Malfoy, are you?" Ginny raises her brows suspiciously.

Hermione laughs, a nervous one, but says, "Not a chance. Beavers and ferrets don't add up"

And Ginny laughs, while Hermione let's the truth behind her words sink into her heart.

* * *

"Mr Nott, Ms Lovegood, if you'll both please step up" McGonagall calls.

From her peripheral vision, Hermione watches the blond as he claps a hand on Nott's shoulder, her eyes lingering on his pale, long, slender fingers for far too long than she would have liked.

"Good luck, Luna" Ginny yells beside her.

Hermione smiles at Luna, and holds her thumb up to wish her luck.

Luna smiles back at them, but her eyes are glinting in a strange way.

Professor Flitwick walks down, and towards the two participants. "Your task consists of three parts. In part one, you'll be required to transfigure a feather into a pot. With the right spell, the transfigured pot will contain a part from your second task which will be explained to you later. Please take your positions behind the desks."

Ginny clasps her hands together and places them in her lap. Hermione can feel the tension radiating off of her, and she places a hand on the redhead's shoulder. Ginny turns towards her and whispers, "I have a feeling Luna is going to do something bad"

Hermione scoffs "Luna and bad? These words don't go together, Gin."

Ginny twists her lips. " I'm telling you" she mumbles.

Hermione shrugs and turns her attention back to the participants, her eyes fighting hard not to stray and land on Malfoy.

"On the count of three.  
Three  
Two  
One  
GO!" McGonagall yells. The Ravenclaws and Gryffindors begin to cheer for Luna. Some of the Hufflepuffs, too, are wearing blue to match with Luna's house, and the Slytherins are quiet. As usual.

" Flick it towards the right. Right right right" Hermione mutters under her breath.

Luna flicks her wand towards the left and then swirls it towards the feather. There is a blast, and the feather catches fire.

Ginny gasps, and Hermione narrows her eyes at Luna, because she doesn't look apologetic at all. In fact, she looks quite pleased with herself.

"Aguamenti" Professor Flitwick points his wand at the feather, and the fire dies out.

He looks pointedly between Luna and Nott, who is eyeing Luna curiously.

"Ms Lovegood, I believe it was just a misunderstanding on your behalf. Let's start all over again"

Other students in the Hall begin to cheer again.

" -yes, professor"

" -it was a mistake"

"-may be Luna's feather was jinxed"

"-bloody Slytherin must have done it"

"Silence!" McGonagall hurries down the stairs.

" I'm afraid, Professor Flitwick, we cannot allow that. Rules are rules, and must be followed."

Professor Flitwick sighs and nods. " Very well, Headmistress"

"Theodre Nott wins!"

And Luna's grin widens.

* * *

" What the fuck was that, Luna?" Ginny snarls.

Luna shrugs, "what?"

"You lost on purpose, didn't you?"

Luna's lips curve into a lopsided grin.  
"I didn't lose. I won" she says.

"Won what?" Hermione asks.

"This," she says, her eyes pointing towards the end of the corridor.

And Malfoy and Nott are walking towards them. Hermione holds her breath, her nails digging in her palm. She doesn't know why Malfoy has this effect on her, but she does know that whatever the reason, she doesn't like it.

"Luna" Nott greets.

And Hermione's jaw almost drops, while Ginny's mouth actually drops open.

"Theo" Luna smiles at him.

Hermione looks between the two of them, confused as to why they were looking at each other like they were- " What th'fuck?!" Ginny screeches.

Because what th'fuck actually. Theo's hands were holding Luna's head as he kissed her. Hermione shakes her head once.  
Twice.  
And then once again.

He pulls away, his lips stretching into an excellent grin. " Same time. Same place" he whispers in her ear.

Luna smiles at him, all big, bright and so Luna.

" Okay" she says.

" Let's go" Malfoy says, grabbing Nott's arm.

And Hermione is sure she stopped breathing


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So much love for those who commented/left kudos/followed this story! I promise you it'll be fun! I hope you guys will enjoy this chapter! :)) All my love x

* * *

**Treasure Hunt**

**Chapter Two**

* * *

 

 

"What. Was. That, Luna?!" Ginny hisses, her blue eyes narrowing.

Luna shrugs.  
"I wasn't allowed to tell you guys"

" What are you talking about, Luna?" Hermione asks.

"Me and Theo...We met during summer...in France. We began spending time together as friends..until he asked me out."

"And you said yes?" Ginny's eyes are as wide as saucers.

" Of course" Luna frowns, "I liked him...a lot. And it just seemed stupid not to say yes"

"So...you're dating Nott?" Hermione asks.

Luna nods.

"Then why didn't we ever see you both together? "

"Theo wanted us to be a secret...didn't want anybody to know about us. That's what I won today, and that's how and why you guys know all of this right now" she says.

"So, for making your relationship public, he asked you to lose the task today?" Ginny asks, her tone conveying exactly how she's feeling- Incredulous.

"Merlin, no" Luna shakes her head.  
"He wasn't worried about his reputation- if you're thinking that, he didn't want me to fa-"

"Wait wait wait! " Ginny holds up her index finger.

Luna looks at her.

" Luna, you do remember that we caught Nott and Parkinson in a  _broom_  closet, don't you?" Ginny raises her brows.

"Oh. That was me under polyjuice. That's how we meet" Luna seemed unfazed by her admission.

" What. The. Actual. Fuck!" Ginny snarls.

" Luna, are you sure?" Hermione asks uncertainly.

Luna smiles. "They're not bad people, you know. Just a little odd...and a little left out."

Hermione nods, her gaze unfocused.

" What if he's just playing with you?" Ginny asks.

" He isn't" Luna replies. "We like each other...very much"

" You're not in love with him, are you?" Ginny's expression turns to a horrified one.

"It's the next step" Luna replies with a smile.

"I hope you know what you're doing"

" I do" Luna says, and her eyes turn towards Hermione, knowingly.

Hermione turns away.

* * *

Her heart is beating extremely fast.  _Thump thump thump thump._ She cups her hands under the running water, and let's them fill completely before splashing the water on her face. Hermione braces herself on the counter, her arms shaking and feet wobbling.  _Blood blood blood._ She can see it, but she can't.

" No" She breathes out.

"No" -again, as a tear rolls down her cheek.

Her stomach churns and her chest heaves with every breath she takes. She grabs her wand from the shelf on top of the sink, and mutters a quick glamour charm to hide the bags under her eyes. She then opens the cabinet and reaches for a calming draught. The war always found its way back...in her head.

* * *

**7 October 1999, Thursday**

"Stay calm. Don't panic. Stay calm. Don't panic." Ginny tells herself.

Hermione shakes her head, "it's not the first time you're flying, Gin"

"But it is my first time against  _him"_

" Think he'll beat you?" Hermione asks with a tiny smirk on her face.

"Oh no way. No  _fucking_ way! I'm going to show him how Weasleys play" she sniffs.

Hermione chuckles. " Buckle up then. Just twenty minutes left"

"Right... Mione?"

"Yes"

Ginny's eyes are sparkling as she asks, "Where is the Felix Felicis you made for your task?"

Hermione licks her lips. "P-Professor Slughorn kept it...And even if I had it, I most certainly wouldn't have allowed you to use it"

Ginny scowls "I know. And that's why I would've taken it out of your trunk" she sticks her tongue out.

Hermione huffs a laugh, her insides burning. She hated lying, but she couldn't have let Ginny use the potion, because she wanted  _the blond_  to have a fair chance.

Because she was a Gryffindor. Yes, that's why.

* * *

Only Parkinson and Nott were present from the Slytherin House. A sudden something made her heart flutter, and she placed a hand on her chest. It wasn't at all because of the fact that he was alone. So, so alone. His own house members not speaking to him. Having just two friends. His father behind the bars in Azkaban, and his mother buried deep within the ground. Her heart clenched inside her chest. Okay, may be...just  _may be_ she did care a  _little...just_  a little.

The stands were decorated in Gryffindor colours; red and gold by the Gryffindors. Even the Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs were wearing red scarves to show their support for Ginny. Hermione wondered why the other Slytherins weren't here...

"Ms. Weasley, Mr. Malfoy, up please!" Madam Hooch whistles.

Hermione holds her breath as she watches the blond mount the broom, his sleeves rolled up to his elbows, showing pale skin and some veins. His gaze remains on the ground as he flies up and high, towards Madam Hooch.

Ginny and Malfoy hover in the air, right in the middle of the field, facing each other.

"Since your positions in the Quidditch Team are not the same, we have come up with a task that would include, both, chasing and seeking skills. The Golden Snitch will be released, and as you'll fly, you'll find many obstacles in your way. Mind you, the obstacle might even be a flying bludger...Any questions?" She asks.

"No, Professor" Ginny says, their voices raised by  _sonorous._

Malfoy, as usual, shakes his head.

"Alright, children, best of luck to you both. Please shake your hands"

Ginny's nostrils flare as she raises her hand, and a muscle in Malfoy's jaw twitches as he clasps his hand around hers.

And with a sinking feeling in her heart, Hermione discovers that she's..jealous of Ginny. She turns her head away, her eyes stinging for some reason. She sniffs and pulls her scarf tighter around herself, her nose turning red due to the cold.

Something shatters inside her when she finds her heart praying- almost wishing for Malfoy to win.

"Please win, Gin" She whispers, her breath puffing out.

"No foul play. Get set... and GO!" Madam Hooch whistles, and the crowd erupts into yells and howls.  
" Go Ginny Go " the Gryffindors cheer, and Hermione has to force herself to join. She doesn't know what's happening to her...or why it's happening, but she knows she hates it. Already.

"Go Ginny!" She yells, and freezes as Malfoy looks at her. For the first time in two days- just a glance, nothing more, but nothing else either. And her lips snap shut. He's flying right in front of her, his eyes searching for the glint of golden, but there is no sun, and that's what makes it even more harder.

A bludger soars towards Malfoy, and her eyes widen to the point where she's afraid that they might actually just  _pop_ out.

Malfoy dodges it like  _no big deal,_ and she's reminded of the fact that he's an excellent seeker.

Ginny, on the other hand, is flying towards the opposite side. Hermione looks at Malfoy, and his eyes are just roaming through the air, never fixed at a spot. She swallows, because if he doesn't start looking properly, then he might lose...And that's why he shouldn't. Yes, he shouldn't look...because she doesn't want him to win. Absolutely not.

"Go Gin" she yells again, her eyes and heart hoping that he'd turn towards her- again, but he doesn't.

She's hoping against hope, because she wants Ginny to win. Yes, she really wants her to win. Not him. Not him. The reason why she's so worked up in this? She doesn't know. And she doesn't wish to find out.

A sudden roar of cheers and whistles snap her attention back to the present. Ginny and Malfoy are drifting towards her, and that's when she sees it, just a spark of gold, right in front of her eyes.

_Hurry up, Gin_   
_Faster_   
_Malfoy is closer_   
_So close_   
_Come on Malfoy_   
_Yes yes yes_   
_MALFOY!_

She gasps as Draco Malfoy's face comes so close to her, that if she'd just lean a  _bit closer..._  he's staring at her. Right in her eyes. There's some silver in his grey eyes, she notices, and a few specks of blue. Ocean blue.

"Draco Malfoy catches the Snitch!" Madam Hooch's whistle hurts her eardrums, because her world has faded. Nothing- Nothing remains except for the man hovering in the air right in front of her.

Malfoy blinks, his eyes landing on the ball of gold in his hands, his fist clenches and she watches, mesmerised, as the corner of his lips tug upwards into a lopsided grin.

She doesn't care if he's looking- or anybody for that matter, and she grins widely, her jaw hurting, because she wants to yell and celebrate with, and for him. He looks at her, his eyes narrowed, and her grin vanishes, and then he takes off in the direction of Madam Hooch in the middle of the field, his eyes taking longer than they should to turn away from her.

Hermione swallows nervously, and sincerely hopes that Ginny didn't see her while she was ogling Malfoy. Silence ensues, save for Theodre Nott, who is standing on his seat on the stands, and clapping and celebrating for his best friend. Hermione finds herself smiling at him, appreciatively, because nobody deserves silence after winning. She remembers the crowd going wild when she won, she just hopes things would change someday, and a Malfoy would be cheered for.

* * *

"You were happy" Ginny says, quietly.

Hermione inhales harshly through her nose, her throat drying out.

"I-I wasn't happy" she says, but there's no use. Because Ginny had seen the look of pure joy on her face.

Ginny snorts," Don't lie to me, Hermione, you know you're shit at lying"

"I'm sorry" she whispers, because she really is. Because she herself doesn't know why her heart beat had escalated after watching the crinkle beside his sparkling eyes, and his crooked lips.

" You're mad, you know that?" Ginny says and jumps onto the bed beside her.

Hermione shifts, giving her space.

"I didn't stand a chance against him anyway" Ginny shrugs.

"Don't say that, Gin"

" Pshaww" Ginny waves her hand in the air "It's good that he won actually" she says.

Hermione's eyes widen.

"Don't look at me like that... I mean I realised it after he won...Nobody even clapped for him Hermione... I mean he deserved it after such an amazing win"

Hermione smiles. " I'm glad you understand. But know one thing, Gin, I didn't...I mean it wasn't on purpose.."

" Your smile just happened?" And the naughtiness that is so Ginny returns to her eyes.

" Oh hush"

" By the way.." she begins, and Hemeione shakes her head, chuckling.

" He remained near you..It was like as if he knew that the Snitch would be somewhere near you"

Hermione refuses to hear her point, because then her brain will work itself up, and reach to invalid and  _inappropriate_ conclusions.

" And you were flying towards Parkins-"

"Don't you finish that sentence, Hermione Granger!" Ginny growls.

And Hermione laughs.

"When does the tournament begin?" The redhead asks.

"We have three weeks" she says, and her heart skips a beat when she realises who  _we_ are.

The Hogwarts Trio.

Theodre Nott  
Draco Malfoy  
Hermione Granger

_Shit shit shit_

And it seems like Ginny realises it at the same moment as her.

" The trio!" They both yell.

Ginny squeals and drops back on the bed, throwing her head back, dramatically.

"You're so gone, Hermione Granger! Merlin knows how long you'll have to spend with only Nott and  _Malfoy_ for company! "

And there's a thrill, a wave of excitement that shoots through Hermione's spine and travels straight to her heart, making it flutter inside her chest.

" You're excited! " Ginny yells, eyes wide, mouth agape.

" Of course I am...For the tournament, that is" she says with a sly grin, and Ginny laughs. Her laugh is so girly and bubbly, that soon Hermione, too, is clutching at her stomach.

"And Mione? " She says when the laughter dies down a bit.

" Yes?"

" I saw the vial of Felix Felicis in your trunk last night."

"That would've been unfair-" Hermione tries to reason.

" I never said it was wrong of you to keep it from me, but just trust me enough next time" she says with a sigh.

"I will" she promises, and Ginny smiles at her, all bright and beaming eyes.

* * *

The sun is setting, leaving a burnt orange- almost red shade behind. She drops her head onto the grass, and lifts her knees by sliding her feet towards her hips. Hermione loved watching the sunset. It gave her hope- a promise of a new beginning. A promise of returning with something bright and new. She rolls her head to the side, her eyes drifting shut, and inhales the scent of freshly mown grass. It's calming and soothing in a way she doesn't know what to call. And she loves it.

"Granger"

Her head snaps up, and she sits upright. Nott is walking towards her, with Malfoy and Parkinson trailing closely behind.

She swallows, and gets up from the grass, dusting herself clean by slapping her hands on her skirt.

" Yes?" She says when he's right in front of her, and she has to glue her eyes to his to prevent them from straying towards  _the blond._

"McGonagall wants to discuss something about the tournament" he says.

She nods and they both turn, almost walking into Malfoy and Parkinson. Hermione's breath hitches in her throat as Parkinson slips her hand through Malfoy's arm, and drags him towards the other side. She tears her eyes away, a deep burning sensation rising behind her eyelids.

And then she remembers.  
 _" Caught Parkinson and Nott in a broom closet"_

_"It was me under polyjuice"_

_" Granger eyes other people's boyfriends"_

_"It was me under polyjuice"_

_"-other people's boyfriends"_

She comes to an abrupt halt, a pain shooting up her foot.

Nott stops as well, and turns to look at her.

She glances down at her foot, and realises with a start that she was walking barefoot. Her shoes were back where she was lying, and now a tiny shard of glass was halfway inside her foot.

" Oh" Nott says. He grabs her arm to steady her as she lifts the bad foot up to prevent the glass from going inside completely.

"Hold on" Nott says and walks them backwards until her back hits a tree trunk.

"Maintain your balance, and stay still" he says, and drops on his knees in front of her. Red covers her cheeks due to her embarrassment. Nott was on his knees in front of her...holding her foot. She has this sudden urge to giggle.

He carefully grabs the piece of glass, and she grabs the tree to steady herself.

"It's going to hurt" he says and pulls the shard of glass out, all together.

She winces, and he looks at her apologetically. She finds it hard to believe that this is the same Nott. The very same Theodore Nott who she grew up with.

"Thank you" She says as he stands up and wipes his hands on his pants.

" Don't mention" he smiles.

Her gaze lands on Malfoy and Parkinson, walking at a distance, the blond staring right at her.

She holds his gaze as she holds her hand out to Nott. Nott looks at her questioningly, and she almost smirks at the blond before looking at Nott.

"Hermione Granger" she says, grinning.

He grins back, "Theodore Nott...call me Theo"

"Theo" she nods with a smile.

"Granger" he grins, and she chuckles.

"Come on, Draco! You can be all lovey-dovey later"

Hermione's heart slams painfully against her chest, misses a beat, and then beats frantically.

She raises her gaze, and finds Nott smirking and Malfoy scowling.

She turns her head away, and summons her shoes.

The Trio walks towards the castle, together, and then towards McGonagall's office. Nott-Theo holds his hand up, making her and the other man pause. He then flicks his hair out of his face, and gives a dramatic bow. He lifts his hand, and curls it into a fist, slowly. And then bangs it on the oak door.

Hermione can't help the chuckle that escapes her, and she lifts a hand to her mouth to prevent any further embarrassing sounds escaping- because she's very much aware of the blond staring at her.

" Come in" McGonagall calls from the other side of the door.

Theo pushes the door and holds it open for her. She gives him the tiniest of smiles and walks towards the seat opposite McGonagall's desk.

Theo takes a seat on the chair opposite hers, and she holds her breath, because there is only one another empty seat- beside her, and only one other  _person._

Malfoy takes a seat beside her, his legs almost touching hers. She swallows thickly, and turns her legs the other way, towards McGonagall's desk.

"How are you all?" The Headmistress asks.

" Fine, thank you" Hermione says.  
" Good" Theo says.  
A nod- that's Malfoy.

"Excellent. So what I've called you here for is-..."

* * *

Theo and Luna were officially an  _item._ As Theo had suspected, Luna had to face a lot of criticism. People would call her Loony, and Theo would almost lose his temper.

Hermione smiled as she watched them both from a distance. They were a match made in heaven. Perfect for each other. Luna was a very different girl. Her ideas, thoughts and way of thinking was very unique. Theo on the other hand, Hermione had found, was a very jolly man. He was sweet, but he knew when to put on his mask of indifference. He made Luna laugh, making her eyes sparkle in a way they never did before. Hermione could tell that her laughter reached Theo's heart by the way he'd stare at her.

On the other hand, she had caught Malfoy and Parkinson alone- quite a few times actually, and she was surprised to find that no matter how hard she tried, they always managed to get in her path. She never saw them kiss, or even hug, but by the way Parkinson would hold his arm, or those long walks late at night.. It just wasn't  _friend_  type, especially if it's Malfoy.

" Join us, Granger, we're going to Hogsmead" Theo's voice snaps her out of her trance, and she lifts her gaze off the ground.

She smiles at the couple in front of her and says, "No, I have some work to do. Some other time"

Theo nods, and Luna passes a smile her way before they both turn around.

Hermione walks up the slope, to the castle, and enters through the large oak doors. She turns towards the staircase, when she hears a breathy little sound and then a  _hiss._ She frowns, and walks towards the corridor to her right.

What she sees is not something she was expecting to see. Parkinson is against the wall, Malfoy's hands beside her head. Their heads are turned towards her, eyes wider than usual. Parkinson's lips are red and swollen, Malfoy's hair is tousled...like someone just ran a hand through it...wildly.

Hermione takes in a shaky breath, her voice foreign to her own ears as she says, "Um..sorry. I was just passing when I thought I heard some noise"

She tucks a stray curl behind her ear, and turns away, but not before she catches the smirk that forms on Parkinson's face.

Bitch.

Hermione walks out of the corridor, slowly- normally. And as soon as she's out, she dashes towards the stairs, her tears heavy on her lids, and slipping through her lashes. Her throat was burning and a block of mass was sitting at its base. A hiccup tears through her mouth, and she covers her mouth with her palm, her feet pounding against the marble floor.

She doesn't stop until she's in the safety of her dorm.

* * *

"I think he hexed me" Hermione tells her reflection in the mirror.

" I can't...I can't...be. It's a jinx. Or may be...he gave me a love potion!  _What?_ Love? Where did the L word come from? No, no. This was just...a  _crush"_ she grimaces. Never in her wildest dream would she have thought that there will come a day in her life when she'll use  _Malfoy_ and  _crush_ in the same sentence.

"Well, whatever it was, it's over now. I know better than to keep an eye on  _other people's boyfriends,_ especially Parkinson's. Ew."

And now she's feeling a lot better.

She runs a hand through her wild her, trying to smooth it down, and wipes her eyes that are red and swollen, dried tear tracks marking her face.

This was unacceptable. She didn't even know when this had happened, or if anything had happened at all. May be she just misses Harry and Ron. May be it's about friends and friendship. She sighs and swallows a spoonful of dreamless sleep draught.

It was going to be a long night.

* * *

"Granger" Theo calls.

Hermione skids to a halt, and turns to look at the brown haired man.

" Yes?"

" McGonagall wants us" he says sheepishly, and scratches the nape of his neck.

Hermione chuckles. " You only call me when McGonagall wants us" she teases him, her tone light.

He grins, "well yeah. I'm busy most of the time" and his smirk tells her that she wouldn't want to know the details. She throws a playful glare his way, and turns towards the direction of The Headmistress Office, Theo walking beside her.

" You and Luna managed to keep quiet for a long time" she muses.

He grins at her "who says we're quiet?"

Red stains her cheeks as she gets what he has implied. " Not like that, you prat"

" What are you thinking about, Granger? "He feigns innocence.

Hermione laughs, and then her gaze lands on the man standing in front of them. The glass windows catch some rays of the sun, and shine it directly onto his platinum blond hair, making it look almost white. His features look sharp, his grey eyes narrowed.

" What took you so long?" He snarls.

Her breath batches in her throat, and it takes her a moment to realise that he's speaking to Theo.

" Waiting for  _us_ to go in, Draco?" Theo smirks.

Malfoy rolls his eyes, his lips turning up into a sneer, and Hermione is baffled and somewhat disgusted at herself for having  _the tiniest_ amount of feelings for this sorry excuse for a human being.

Git.

" Need a special invitation, Granger?" He drawls, and she realises with a start that Theo is already inside the office and Malfoy is holding the door open for  _her._

She shakes her head, her brown locks whipping back and forth, and walks straight through the door, inhaling sharply, but silently, when she passes by him. He smells of apples and something citrus and...something she has smelt before, but can't quite place what it is.

She walks towards Theo, and takes takes a seat beside him, thanking Merlin for telling Salazar to tell Theo to sit on the double couch.

She really was mad, wasn't she?

The blond takes a seat in front of her, and she glues her eyes to McGonagall's face.

"You might or might not like what I'm about to say..." McGonagall's gaze lands on Hermione, and she groans inwardly because she knows she's the one McGonagall is talking about.

°•○

"WHAT?" Ginny screeches.

Hermione makes a sound which isn't even close to what humans usually make.

" THAT IS...! O MY GOD! WE NEED TO GO SHOPPING RIGHT NOW!" Ginny begins to look for her robe in the wardrobe, and Hermione rolls her eyes.

" Merlin's sake, Gin. That's all that you're worried about? "

"This is good news, Hermione! We can baffle him. Shock him. Make him forget about every other girl that he has met!" Ginny squeals excitedly.

Hermione slams her palm against her forehead. "I'll have to dance with him, Ginny. Dance!" She groans.

Ginny claps her hands, her eyes beaming. "That would be so romantic, Hermione. Just imagine...you and him dancing in the dark with a spotlight above your heads. His hands on your waist, and yours on his shoulders. And he's looking at you like you're the only one present in the Hall."

A shudder runs through her body, and she shakes her head vigorously, trying to get rid of the mental image.

"Don't be daft, Ginny. It's a Yule Ball, not an engagement party. Besides, who said we're going to dance in that way. He might not even want to touch me"

Ginny snorts. " Leave that to me and Luna. We're going to make you look like the most beautiful girl in this world! Now, do you want to go dress shopping, or should I pick one for you myself?" Ginny asks, her hands perched on her hips.

Hermione yawns, her eyes drifting shut.

" I'll go with you but, tomorrow. "

"Fine." Ginny scowls.

The last thing Hermione sees before falling asleep is the joy on Ginny's face as she says, "Can't wait for Saturday"

* * *

" This will look great on you, Hermione!" Ginny grabs a dress from the first rack, and shoves it into Hermione's arms.

Hermione raises her brows at her.

"Go try it on!" Ginny rushes.

Hermione holds the dress up, her lips curving up in distaste. The dress was a satin material, with a very deep sweetheart plunging neckline. It was such a bright red, that it almost hurt her eyes to even look at it. The skirt was too short, showing more skin than she'd like to show.

"I'll look like what Parkinson called me in this dress" Hermione hangs the dress back on the rod, and turns towards Ginny.

" That's not sultry, Hermione. That's  _sexy"_  her eyes are beaming.

Hermione scowls at her, clearly catching her meaning, and turns towards Luna as she holds out a dress.

"This would suit you" Luna says.

Hermione takes the dress from Luna, her eyes roaming over it. It really did look good.

"Oh no. What the fuck is this grandma dress?" Ginny scowls.

" It's not a grandma dress" Luna says, as calm as always.

Ginny rolls her eyes "it's practically a galaxy on a dress. Nothing special!"

"Oh it is very special." Luna says with a smile.

Hermione walks towards the mirror, and holds the dress in front of her. It looks like it would fit her perfectly. The dress was a galaxy print, mostly a shade of blues and violets, blended into each other perfectly. The stars are charmed to look brighter than sequins would, and she finds herself liking it already. There's a pattern-

"-we'll see" Ginny bites back.

The redhead and the blonde were still bickering in the background, and Hermione shakes her head.

" Try it on, Hermione" Luna prompts.

" Alright" she steps inside the fitting room, and magically vanishes her clothes. She lifts the dress above and over her head, pulling through, and pulls it down. The dress fits her perfectly. The bodice is made up of diamonds, crystal and clear. The skirt has the print, and as she twirls, it puffs out from below her waist, and she falls in love with it.

"Stop ogling yourself in the mirror, Hermione!" Ginny yells from outside.

Hermione laughs; the redhead knew her too well.

"For fucks sake" Ginny growls and barges in, her eyes rake over her form- head to toe, toe to head, and back down again.

" Wow" Luna says from behind.

Hermione smiles at them and steps out of the fitting room.

"So, how does it look?" She asks, and twirls once.

"THIS IS THE ONE. THIS IS THE FUCKING ONE" Ginny screeches, and the cashier comes running towards them.

" Everything okay?" She asks.

Hermione glares at Ginny. " Yes, sorry for the disturbance"

The girl nods. " You look quite beautiful, Ms. Granger. I didn't know this dress was-"

"Could you please pack it for us? We're running late" Luna interrupts.

" Yes, of course. Call me when you've changed out of it"

" Sure" Luna says.

* * *

" I'm sure we don't need any rehearsals, but let's just go over the plan once. " McGonagall says.

Hermione glances towards her side, and finds Malfoy staring at the floor.

"The opening dance will be by Mr. Malfoy and Ms. Granger."

Hermione's breath hitches in her throat.

"Mr. Nott will join soon after, with his partner, Ms. Lovegood"

" Professor, I didn't know we could choose our own partners" Malfoy says, his eyes narrowing.

"You can't" She says. "Since you're a Trio, we couldn't exactly have you three dancing altogether like young children, and Mr. Nott approached me first, so he gets to bring his own date" she smiles at him.

Malfoy nods, and his gaze falls to the floor, again.

"Anyways, you have to dance with your partner till the song ends, and then partners will be exchanged...Any questions?"

Silence ensues, and then Theo raises his hand.

" Yes, Mr. Nott?"

" Professor, what about after the dance? Are we allowed to stay with partners of our choice?"

McGonagall raises her eyebrows.

" This question should've been asked by Mr. Malfoy or Ms. Granger, considering that you're already going with your own girlfriend"

Theo glares at her.

"You're all free to do whatever you want to do after the dance, but I expect it to be  _perfect."_

* * *

 **23 October, 1999.**  [ **Saturday]**

"Out now, Hermione" Ginny yells.

Hermione sighs and opens the bathroom door, her brain telling her that she's forgetting something vital.

Ginny grabs her hand and drags her towards a stool. Pushing her onto it, Ginny grabs her wand with one hand, and unravels her hair with the other. She casts a quick drying charm, mumbling something about  _running late.._

" Careful, Gin" Hermione yelps as Ginny rubs moisturiser all over her face. " There's no time to be careful" Ginny pants as if running late to catch a train.

" You're going to injure her this way" Luna says with a slight chuckle.

"Oh hush. Came here and do her hair" Ginny instructs, her hands working on her face.

"Please keep it natural, Gin" Hermione almost pleads.

" Natural, my arse" Ginny says and grabs a kohl pencil and runs it all over her eyelids.

Hermione screeches, "Gin!"

" Calm down, Hermione! Don't you trust me?"

 _No. Not in this matter,_ she wants to say, but ends up groaning instead.

Ginny grabs a brush and begins to blend the kohl on her lids. She then applies some concealer on top, and blends it into her skin. Grabbing a puff from the shelf, she dabs a hint of blush on her cheeks, and then pulls out a container of dark blue and silver glitter. She lines Hermione's eyes with a pitch black matt liquid eyeliner, and then takes an angled brush, dips it into the pot of glitter, and applies it right where her eyeliner ends. Grabbing a mascara, she smothers her lashes with the black pigment.

Meanwhile, Luna splits her hair into four sections, and mutters incantations from a spell book, making her hair all wavy, and calm.  
She then performs a spell, and a shimmer falls all over her.  _Silver_ shimmer.

Back to her face, Ginny lines her lips with a rosy pink lip liner, and then fills them in with the same shade of lipstick.

The girls surprise her by pulling a sparkling choker out of a box, and placing it around her neck.

" It's beautiful! " Hermione says, looking at her friends with nothing but affection.

" Not more than you" Ginny says, and fans herself with her hand.

" You look drop-dead gorgeous, Hermione!" Ginny squeals.

"You look like a princess" Luna says, her eyes shinning.

"Thank you so much" Hermione says, and pulls then both in for a hug.

"Wait till he sees you" Ginny whispers in her ear.

And a jolt of excitement runs through her body, making her blood cold and tingly.

* * *

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm excited for the next chapter. Eeeek!!! Please comment! x


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back with Chapter Three, lovelies! Thank you so much for the response on the previous two chapters! Your words mean so much to me! This story is going to be a bit of a slow-burn, so ya'll are gonna have to be a bit patient with me. I sincerely hope you'll enjoy. Love x

* * *

**Treasure Hunt**

**Chapter Three**

* * *

 

Taking a deep breath, and gathering up all her Gryffindor courage, Hermione pushes the classroom door open. Her breath hitches in her throat, her mouth going dry. He's clad in a black tuxedo, nothing too fancy. But it's the first time she has seen him like this. His blond hair is not slick and sticking to his head, instead it's a bit ruffled, but still managing to look lush.

He's wearing a wrist watch, the glass catching the light, and blinding her for a moment. She swallows with difficulty, and moves her gaze away from him, because now he's watching her.

Theo walks up to Luna, and places a chaste kiss on her cheek. Hermione turns her head away from them, feeling completely out of place. Malfoy is still watching her, and she subconsciously runs her palm over her hair.

"We're running late" Luna says.

"Yeah, let's go" Theo says, and loops Luna's arm through his own.

Theo and Luna leave, leaving Malfoy and her to suffocate in the thick silence.

Malfoy clears his throat, his eyes moving up from her throat to her face. He nods towards the door, and she walks out. He follows her, and begins to walk towards the Great hall. Hermione follows him, her eyes taking- drinking him in. His back is straight, and his hair shines as they pass the lit lanterns on their way.

Dr-Malfoy pauses, and turns to look at her through hooded eyes. She raises her chin then, and looks him dead in the eye.

"McGonagall's orders" he murmurs, and lifts his hand, offering her to take it. Her heart skips a beat, and she nervously lifts her hand, and places it in his large one. She almost sighs in contentment, because that's how good he feels. That's how good this feels.

Funny though, she didn't remember McGonagall saying anything like that.

His hand is cold and soft against her warm, moist palm. Her heart is beating so fast, and she wonders if he can feel it through the veins on her palm.

And that's when she remembers that she isn't even supposed to be holding his hand this way. He had offered her his hand, and last time when Viktor...

He begins to walk, and she has to keep up with him, afraid that if she lagged, their little connection might be broken. They walk towards the Great Hall, hand in hand. Slytherin, Gryffindor, Pureblood, Muggle-born, Malfoy, Granger. And she thinks they've already defeated hatred.

* * *

McGonagall clears her throat from the other side, and Malfoy drops her hand. She immediately clasps her hands together in front of her and wills the wetness in them to go away. She's feeling chilled to her bones, her teeth almost chattering. The thrill, the rush of adrenaline in her body makes it hard for her to even breathe.

Their view of the hall is obscured by the heavy silver curtain in front of them. She hadn't known their entrance was planned, and she's wringing her hands together to dissipate some of the tension, but it all remains.

The curtain pulls apart, and Malfoy holds his hand out. This time, instead of holding it, she places her palm on his hand like she was supposed to, and they both walk towards the center of the Hall. Hermione keeps her gaze fixed on a random point at a wall, and her heart hammers painfully inside her chest as Malfoy comes to a halt, and pulls his hand away.

She turns to face him, her eyes wide and sparkling. The music begins to play and Malfoy bows his head, and offers her his hand. She swallows thickly before she accepts it, her heart picking up pace with the passage of every second.

The lights are turned low, and a spotlight appears above their heads.

She was not expecting this.

Ginny's words course through her brain, and she desperately tries to keep them at bay.

Dancing in the dark with a spotlight above your heads.

Malfoy intertwines their fingers together, and she slides her other hand up to his shoulder. His hand inches towards her waist, and then snakes towards her back, pulling her closer. She almost looks away, because he's so close. She can see him now. His eyes are a unique shade of grey, with a hint of swirling blues in his iris. His lashes are long and the subtle dusting of blonde hair; his eyebrows, shine as the light falls on them.

His hands on your waist, and yours on his shoulders.

His pupils are dilated, and she wonders if he's seen Parkinson today.

Her feet move on their own accord, and she's relaxing against him. She needs to enjoy this, because she knows she might not get another chance. The song speeds up a bit, and Malfoy pulls his hand away from her waist, and holds it behind his own back. He then untangles their hands, and grabs her fingertips as he applies some force, and she twirls, the chiffon dress puffing out below her waist.

He twirls her once.

Twice.

And then he's pulling her back against his chest. Her breath hitches in her throat because this is way too intense. She can almost feel his heartbeat coursing through her own body, and she's scared that she might lose in her own in between.

He keeps a hold of her fingers as they sway to the music, her back to his chest. She feels him drop his head low, because now his breath is fanning the hair at the nape of her neck, and all she wants to do is close her eyes, throw her head back and sigh.

The music changes beat again, and she finds herself back in Malfoy's arms like in the beginning. He pulls her closer this time, his eyes hooded.

Malfoy looks at her in the eyes, and then his gaze follows a path down her nose to her cheeks and then to her lips...

She unconciously licks them, and looks up at him. His eyes are roaming over her face, his long lashes casting a shadow on his cheekbones. He looks so, Godric, forgive me, beautiful.

And he's looking at you like you're the only one present in the Hall.

He twirls her again, and this time she keeps her gaze low. She freezes as her eyes land on her galaxy print skirt. There are stars that she had never noticed before, shinning and glinting in the dim light of the Hall, connected to each other by white thread, enchanted to shine when it catches light, forming a constellation.

The dragon constellation; Draco.

She almost pushes him away and tries to make an escape, but he holds onto her hand tighter, and his brows furrow. She breathes faster than she's ever had, her vision blurring. How the hell had this happened? She looks down at her dress, and realises her mistake just as soon, because now he's looking there too. He doesn't seem surprised, and that's what bothers her the most.

She thanks the star-  _Merlin_...she thanks Merlin as Luna and Theo enter, grabbing the attention of the onlookers, and catching another spotlight.

She had had enough of stars for today.

Her heart picks up pace, palms sweating, and a pounding pain in her head. Her eyes widen as she realises that she's forgotten to take her daily dose of the calming draught. Her eyes scan the Hall, frantically searching for an escape, but find none.

A lump forms in her throat, her airways constricting and reducing her supply of oxygen. She gasps, and Malfoy spins them so that she's facing the curtain, her back to the crowd.

"Granger" he murmurs her name as he continues to glide them gracefully across the floor.

Hermione places both of her on his shoulders to steady herself as the pain becomes excruciating. It felt like the space was closing in on her, like she would die of suffocation.

She gasps again, louder this time, and Malfoy pinches her at the waist.

"Granger" he hisses.

Hermione's head snaps up, her eyes widening, and the lodge in her throat growing bigger and bigger.

"I...I" she whispers, but isn't able to form a coherent sentence.

" Fuck" he hisses as she drops forward, her head bumping into his chin.

"Granger" he warns, and his nails dig into her waist.

Hermione lifts her head, just a little, and takes several deep breaths, her hands braced on his shoulders. He's still swaying them to the music, and Hermione's head spins as she tries to regain composure.

The pounding in her head subsides, but her airways are still clogged up.

"Don't lose your balance" Malfoy murmurs in her ear. She looks into his eyes, confusedly, and his hands leave her waist, inching towards her hand, and he twirls her.

She lands into Theo's arms as Luna twirls towards Malfoy. Theo takes her hand in one of his, his other hand sliding down to her waist. She places her hand on his shoulder, and they begin to sway to the music.

Hermione's vision is still blurry as she watches Theo lean in to whisper in her ear.

"Are you alright?" he asks.

" Y-yeah" she stutters, and then looks down at her dress again as he twirls her, the Dragon Constellation shinning brighter than anything else in her vision.

* * *

After taking a quick a bath and a spoonful of the calming draught, Hermione makes her way towards the couch and hops down beside Ginny.

Ginny chews the inside of her cheek, her eyes narrow and unfocused.

"Where do you think the constellation came from?" She asks.

Hermione shrugs, her mind running around in circles.

" I'm pretty sure it wasn't there before" she says.

Ginny sighs, "May be it's just us...may be we didn't notice it before"

Hermione bites her lower lip, her eyes squeezing shut.

"I shouldn't have looked at it" she groans.

The redhead tsks, "What difference would that have made?"

" He wouldn't have had seen it if it weren't for me gawking at it"

" You weren't gawking, Hermione. I'm pretty sure I would've noticed if you were. Besides, he didn't look surprised at all. May be he had noticed it before"

"...What if he thinks that I wore it for him?"

" You did, didn't you?" Ginny teases.

Hermione rolls her eyes, and drops her head back.

"He's taken, Merlin's sake! Besides, it's Malfoy were talking about."

"The same Malfoy you have a crush on" Ginny remarks.

" What?!" Hermione screeches.

Ginny smirks "I'm right, Hermione, and you know that"

" No, you're not. I do not have a crush on that prat"

"Denial only makes it more beautiful in the end"

"This is ridiculous" Hermione scoffs.

"It is, isn't it?" Ginny leaps off the couch, and Hermione knows nothing good can come from this, because the redhead was preparing to run.

And as suspected, Gin begins to singsong, "Mione and Malfoy...sitting on a tree..." Hermione shoots up from the couch, and dashes towards her, but she continues, "K I S- Ow" Ginny complains as a flying cushion hits her on the head.

* * *

"Excited?," asks a dreamy voice.

Hermione cranes her neck to look at Luna, her lips stretching into a smile.

" I am"

Luna slides into the empty seat beside her. " I would be too"

Hermione frowns at her "that wasn't fair with you, Luna"

Luna shakes her head, her eyes beaming. "Trust me, Hermione. It was"

Hermione shrugs "if you say so."

Luna smiles "Theo loves adventure."

"Don't you?"

"Not as much as he does"

Hermione hums.

"What if it isn't adventurous?"

Luna smiles "It is. "

Hermione's gaze narrows suspiciously "how do you know?"

"I heard McGonagall while she was discussing it with The Board of Directors- unintentionally, of course"

"So...what is it?" Hermione asks, her curiosity taking the better of her.

"I can't tell you that" Luna says calmly.

Hermione groans.

" When will she tell us? The tournament begins tomorrow"

"Perhaps tomorrow then."

* * *

**1 November 1999 [Day 1]**

The stands were full. People in red were the most prominent, wearing red scarves and hats, holding up banners to cheer for her. Hermione roams her eyes over the crowd, spotting a few familiar faces in between. She pulls her robe tighter around herself, shielding herself from the chill of November.

Malfoy and Theo were walking beside her as the Trio made their way towards the middle of the field where McGonagall and other Professors were waiting for them.

" Good Morning, children" Professor McGonagall smiles at them all.

"Good Morning, Professor" Hermione replies politely.

Malfoy and Theo remain silent.

McGonagall points her wand at her own throat, and mutters a quick sonorous.

"Welcome to the Tri-wizards tournament! This tournament, unlike the previous one, or any other for that matter- is actually what muggles call, Treasure Hunt. The Wizarding World is not familiar with this game, and we are very excited to introduce it to our world.

Treasure Hunt is basically hunting for clues to get to a specific destination. The first clue will be given to them by us, and it is going to be a fairly easy one. The clue is in the form of a riddle, and the three of them have to solve the riddle and find the place or thing.

If it is a thing then it will act as a portkey, and they will be transported to a new place. Mind you, the Dumstrang Trio and the Beauxbatons Trio will also be in the same place as them. Their clues will be different from the other Trios', but the final destination will be the same.

Whoever figures out the clues first and reach the final portkey, will be transported back to their respective school...

Three bags have been packed for you which contain all the necessary items.

Any questions?" McGonagall takes a deep breath.

Hermione's hand shoots up in the air, and the Headmistress smiles knowingly.

" Yes, Ms Granger? "

"Professor, Is it all just Treasure hunt?" She asks confusedly.

"You'll find that it's a very challenging

Treasure hunt, Ms Granger. I can assure you, it won't be easy"

Hermione bites her lip and nods.

"Professor" Theo says.

" Yes, Mr Nott?"

"What's the reward?" He drawls.

McGonagall's brow hikes up, "The love and respect from your fellow schoolmates should be enough, but the winning Trio will get a reward of 20 000 galleons...Anything else, Mr Nott?"

Theo runs his tongue over his teeth, his eyes searching the crowd for a lion hat; his blond eagle.

"How will we...er..contact.. our friends? "

" You are not allowed to contact your friends during the tournament. In case of an emergency, there are three portkeys packed in your bags for each of you three. The portkeys will transport you back to Hogwarts. Keep in mind that this is just a competition and health comes first. Should anyone of you encounter anything dangerous, or fall extremely sick, then please take the portkey back to school.

The tournament can also be won by a Duo, so please don't hesitate to transport back "

Theo nods, his gaze unfocused.

"This will be it then. Be careful, children" McGonagall looks at the Trio worriedly, creases marring her forehead.

The three of them nod their heads, and Hermione passes her a smile.

"Please put your hands together for The Hogwarts Trio. Let the tournament begin!" McGonagall yells and pulls out a napkin which is carefully folded over a red stone.

Theo looks up from the ground, his eyes searching for Luna. His throat bobs up and down as he swallows and lifts his hand to wave at her one last time before leaving.

Hermione turns her head away, and a feeling of warmth envelopes her as Malfoy grabs her hand. She looks at him then, her eyes shinning. His gaze is focused at McGonagall as she carefully unfolds the napkin and reveals the red stone.

Hermione grabs Theo's hand and places it on top of hers and Malfoy's. McGonagall slaps the portkey on their joined hands, the world spins, a feeling of nausea overtakes them, and they land on something hard. Extremely hard.

Hermione grunts out in pain, as Theo lifts himself off her.

"Fucking hell" she hears Malfoy grumble.

She lifts her fists to rub her eyes, and opens them to find herself in the middle of a jungle.

They were currently lying on a tree log, and pain was shooting up her spine. " Come on, Granger" Theo offers her his hand, pulling her to her feet.

"Thank you" She says politely, and dusts her hands over her jeans.

" Where are we?" She mutters.

" No idea" Theo says, and shrugs a shoulder.

" Where's the fucking clue?" Malfoy snarls.

Hermione's head snaps towards his side, his hair tousled and eyes narrowed.

" No fucking clue" Theo responds.

Hermione rolls her eyes internally.

Something behind Malfoy catches her eye, and she points a finger towards what's looking like a cottage from the distance. "What's that?"

"Again, no fucking clue"

" Where are those sodding bags? The old bat-"

"May be they're in there" she interrupts him.

Malfoy looks at her with zeroed eyes, and then turns towards the cottage.

"Oi, where are you going?" Theo questions, and begins to follow Malfoy towards the cottage.

Hermione falls into step beside Theo, her hands clutching at her jumper tightly.

"There's no snow here" she mumbles.

" Thanks, Granger, for stating the obvious" Malfoy's voice rings in her ears, turning them red.

The cottage crouched low into the grassy embankment, as though it were trying to hide, but the misshapen slate roof was too large to go unnoticed. Through the bright sun, she could see the coarse, unevenly sized, grey stones that made up the walls

"Did we travel back in time?" Theo scowls.

Malfoy turns around to face them, his face sharp.

" Shut it for a moment, will you?" He hisses.

Theo's scowl hardens, and Hermione wonders if he'd throw a reply back at the blonde. But, he remains silent.

Malfoy lifts a hand clenched into a fist, and knock on the door; sharp and pointy- just like him.

"I don't think there's anybody in there" Hermione can't help herself, and blurts out the words before her brain can process.

Malfoy glares at her, and she glares right back, her heart hammering inside her chest.

" Go ahead then, Granger" he drawls and steps away from the door. Hermione swallows, lifts her chin up, glares at him, and finally pushes the door open.

The door creaks open to reveal a cozy lounge. There's a fireplace, a book shelf, two sofas and a coffee table.

" There's our bags" Theo says as he enters and walks towards the fireplace. And sure enough, there are three bags lying in front of it. Two green and one red.

" Where's the fucking clue? " Malfoy snarls again.

Hermione turns around sharply, and glares at him. " We're both with you, Malfoy. Even we're looking for it"

" Oh really?" He drawls. " I don't see you looking for it" he sneers at her.

" Neither do I, Malfoy" she bites back.

" Oi you two, come here" Theo calls.

Hermione throws a glare in Malfoy's direction before making her way towards Theo.

" What's that?" She asks, pointing to the envelope in his hand, her eyes widening.

" That's exactly what you think it is."

"The clue" Malfoy says.

" Exactly" Theo smirks.

" Well, open it then" Hermione urges.

" Come on" Theo says and jumps onto the sofa, pating the empty space on either side of him.

Hermione and Malfoy walk towards the couch and sit on either side of Theo.

" Go on, open it" Hermione prompts.

" Ready?" He asks.

Malfoy smacks his arm, "Open it, Theo"

Theo exhales," phew. Okay. Here we go" he peels the Hogwarts stamp off, and pulls the card out of the envelope. The paper is coffee burnt, and words appear on it as they begin to read.

_**I grow up big and tall, and lose my clothes in the fall.** _

" Lose my clothes in the fall?..." Hermione mutters.

" Sounds like a wanker to me. Hey, Draco, you sure the clue isn't in your pocket? "

"Shut up, Theo. It's a tree" he states.

" A tree... Of course!" Hermione's eyes light up.

" And they call you the brightest witch of our age?" Malfoy drawls.

Hermione snorts, " Sod off, Malfoy"

Malfoy tsks "Mature," he mumbles.

And Hermione has this sudden urge to smack him upside down on the head.

"Control, guys. If you both haven't noticed, we're in the middle of a jungle with a million trees" Theo pipes in.

"May be it's the largest tree?" Hermione muses.

Malfoy smirks, and she knows he's about to say something beautiful.

"And how do you suppose we find the largest tree, Granger?"

" Mind your own business, Malfoy" she snarls back, and a feeling of pride swells inside her chest as she watches his smirk drop.

" Oh hush, you both" Theo interrupts. "Let's first check what's in our bags, shall we?"

Hermione nods and grabs the red bag. Opening it up, she surveys whatever is inside.

Shirts

Jeans

Pyjamas

Toilet rolls

Some apples and strawberries

Shampoo

Toothbrush

Toothpaste

Water bottles

Dittany...

* * *

**2 November, 1999 [Day 2]**

The cottage was fairly small. Two bedrooms, one bathroom, a kitchen and a lounge. Hermione enters the kitchen at 1 am, her eyes sleep deprived. She was always unable to sleep in a new place. She hated the feel of unfamiliar beds.

She covers a yawn with the back of her hand, and reaches for the refrigerator door with the other. Pulling the door open, she finds that the fridge is filled with water bottles and some fruits.

Grabbing a water bottle, she pulls away and pushes the door shut. Covering another yawn, Hermione turns around and bumps into someone.

" Ouch"

"Fucking hell"

Malfoy pushes her away, his eyes narrowed.

" Watch where you're going" he snarls.

" Stop creeping up on people!" She retorts.

" I wasn't creeping up on you, Granger. You were being bloody jumpy for no reason"

" Oh shut up, Malfoy. Don't ruin my day."

"Save it, Granger. As if I'd want to breathe in the same air as you" he snarls.

His words stab her in the chest, but she holds herself up and high.

"The feeling is mutual, Malfoy"

Grumbling something about insolent gits, Hermione walks out of the kitchen.

She walks towards her bedroom, but stops short when she hears someone murmuring inside the boys' bedroom.

Her curiosity takes the better of her, and she pushes the door open. Theo is sitting on the bed, his legs crossed at ankles, and his head hanging low. In his hands was a chain made up of... radishes and some peach coloured balls.

"What have you done to me, Luna?" He mumbles again.

Hermione swallows thickly, feeling like an intruder- which she was, and turns around to leave. Knocking into something hard yet again, she places her palms flat onto the tough surface in front of her; Malfoy's chest.

Malfoy smirks down at her, "Eavesdropping, were you?"

"I...what?" she stutters and pulls her hands away from him, her blood tingling.

Malfoy's smirk widens, causing her nostrils to flare.

Her eyes narrow down to slits as she glares at him. " Out of my way, Malfoy"

He pushes his tongue in his cheek, his lips curving. Stepping out of her way, he mockingly waves her towards the hall.

Hermione rolls her eyes and stalks towards her bedroom.

That night she lay awake in her bed, thinking about what in heavens name had she seen in that git to have a crush on him.

**Day Three**

The rocks crunch under their feet as they walk towards Merlin knows what. Their little cottage had disappeared some time during the night, and they had all woken up on tree logs, their backs stinging.

Everything was gone, save for their bags, and the clue card.

"Granger" Theo panted.

" Yes?"

"Any idea in that brilliant brain of yours?" He asks.

Hermione groans inwardly, "I'm too sore to even think." She places a hand on her back for emphasis as Malfoy smirks at the term she has used.

_Sore_

"I'm hungry" Theo barks out, his stomach grumbles and Hermione can't help the chuckle that escapes her.

" You have stuff in your bag, don't you? Eat."

"I'm too lazy to reach behind my back. To open my bag, then to search for food, and then bite, swa- Ow" he palms the spot on his head that was smacked by Malfoy.

Malfoy zips open his bag, grabs an apple, and tosses it to Theo. " Now shut your mouth" he scowls.

Hermione sneers at Malfoy from behind.

How could someone be so rude to their best friend?

" Where are we going?" Theo asks, munching on the green apple.

A muscle in Malfoy's jaw twitches, and Theo smiles wickedly.

"To drown you somewhere" he grumbles.

" Awww tsk tsk. Then you'll be left alone with Granger. Is that what you want? Some alone time with Gr-"

"I swear to God, Theo!" Malfoy growls.

Heat rises in Hermione's cheeks as her brain forms images of her and Malfoy. Alone.

_Against a tree, may be?_

"Oh, shut up!" She growls out loud.

Malfoy and Theo stop mid-stride, and turn to look at her. Her lips clamp shut, and she exhales sharply through her nose.

"Talking to ourselves now, are we, Granger?" Malfoy smirks.

" I'm wounded" Theo places a hand on his chest, "you'd rather speak to yourself than speak to me?"

Hermione scoffs and mutters angrily under her breath. And the boys laugh, their laughter ringing throughout the jungle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please comment! I love hearing from you guys! x


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love you guys! xx

 

* * *

**Treasure Hunt**

**Chapter Four**

* * *

 

 **Day**   **Four**

"Oomph" she stumbles over a large rock, her arms flailing around for balance. A large hand closes around her own, but it's neither tough nor warm.

" Thanks" she mumbles.

" Careful, Granger" Theo replies.

Malfoy kicks a pebble out of his path, and it lands in front of her feet in her path.

She turns around to glare at him, but instead, she knocks right into him as he stumbles forward.

"Fucking hell, Granger! You're clumsier than my house elf!"

At this, Hermione's nostrils flare, eyes narrow, and red covers her cheeks as she explodes.

"You're a vile human being, Malfoy!" She yells.

She pokes an accusing finger in his chest, and Theo grabs her arm to keep her from pouncing at Malfoy, but she's having none of it.

"Just who do you think you are? You walk like you own every damn place, and you talk like you own the world! Those creatures are not your bloody property, Malfoy!" Blood pounds in her ears, and her breathing labours.

Malfoy is just looking at her with an unreadable expression on his face, and then he slaps her finger off his chest and brushes away the germs she might have left.

"Oh but they are my property, Granger" he says nonchalantly.

And Hermione is close to tears. She can't believe she was crushing after this guy...this disgusting piece of...

"You...you manky nutter!"

"Is that the best you can come up with, you dimwitted twat?" He snarls right back.

"Guys, let's just calm down!" Theo interrupts, but Hermione slaps his hand away from her arm.

"I can come up with a lot of stuff, Malfoy, but fortunately, I was raised better than you!"

Something dark flashes behind Malfoy's grey orbs, and Hermione wonders if she's crossed a line.

"You don't want to go there, Granger" he hisses his warning.

Hermione snorts, "I'll go wherever I like, Malfoy"

He takes a step forward, and a hint of fear blossoms in the pit of her stomach.

"Okay, this is enough!" Theo steps between them, and Hermione is grateful for the intervention.

Malfoy sneers at her, and she sneers right back, before they continue towards North.

**Day Five**

"That old bat said that the first clue was going to be easy" Theo groans as he lands to the floor, gracelessly.

"There are a million trees in here" Hermione grounds out as she, too, slides to the ground beside Theo.

"And if we keep stopping like nutters, then we'll be searching for the tree and the tournament would be over" Malfoy butts in.

Git.

" There's something we're missing" she muses.

" Pray tell what, Granger?" Malfoy asks.

Hermione ignores him and turns to face Theo, but he's already asleep.

Malfoy clicks his tongue off the roof of his mouth " looks like you just have the manky nutter for company," he drawls.

" I'd rather sleep than waste my breath on you, Malfoy" she replies smoothly, and lays her head back against the tree bark.

"As if I'd ha-"

"Shut up, Malfoy" she mumbles, and adjusts her head.

She hears him emit a low growl, and a smile graces her lips as she slips off into the land of dreams.

A land where Malfoy is pleasant.

**Day Six**

"It's been six days and we're nowhere near to finding the clue than we were on our first day" Malfoy mutters under his breath.

Hermione rolls her eyes beside him.

"Five days, Malfoy" she corrects.

"It's the sixth day, Granger. Forgot your abc's and one two three's?" He smirks.

Hermione snorts," The sixth day just started, Malfoy."

"So? You think we're going to find it today?"

"Don't you?"

"Absolutely not"

"You're a pessimist"

"No, it's you who's too bloody optimistic"

"It's good to have hope" she argues back.

"No it isn't. "

"Yes it is! Imagine being stuck in a world where only Hermione's live. Wouldn't you want to get out? Wouldn't you tell yourself that it's going to be alright?"

Malfoy smirks at her.

"At last, you finally figured out that my worst case scenario would be a world full of Herm- Grangers."

She wonders if he was going to say her given name.

"That wouldn't be your worst, Malfoy"

Malfoy glares at her, clearly getting her hint.

"Imagine a world full of Voldemorts. That would be my worst case scenario"

He surprises her by flinching at Voldemort's name, and then turns his head sideways to glare at her.

" You two never stop bickering, do you? " Theo falls into step beside her as he emerges from the trees after emptying his bladder.

Hermione shakes her head, and sighs deeply.

How she wished they'd stop bickering.

**Day Seven**

"I'm not coming"

Hermione turns her head to look at the blond.

"What do you mean?"

"English, Granger."

Hermione rolls her eyes, and turns around completely to face him.

Placing her hands on her hips, she asks "And what do you mean by you're not coming?"

" Exactly what your tiny little brain is registering. "

Hermione's brows furrow.

" I'm sick of it, Granger!" He drawls.

" Sick of what?"

"Sick of walking, walking, walking and walking...Some more walking-"

"Oh shut up, Malfoy" she hisses through her teeth.

" We're all trying, aren't we?" She says.

Malfoy huffs, "you call this trying? All we do is walk, eat a damn fruit, and take a piss"

" You're being ridiculous. Stop whining like a baby, Malfoy"

That seems to have shut him u-

"Did you just call me a baby, Granger?"

" Oh fucking hell, give it a rest, will you?" Theo interferes.

"Oh no, I don't think" Malfoy says.

" Theo is right. We're wasting our time" she sniffs.

Malfoy sneers at her, before his eyes turn away from her.

She catches a tiny hint of a smile playing at his lips, and she wonders if he was riling her up on purpose.

Prat.

**OooOooO**

" Hey, Granger, this looks like the tallest tree we've come across" Theo nudges her in the ribs.

Hermione glares at him, her eyes turning to study the tree.

It really was quite big.

"I suppose we can check" she mutters.

" Fuck! Granger, Theo was kidding" Malfoy chides.

Hermione ignores him and walks towards the tree. Carefully lifting her hand, she presses her palm firmly onto the tree trunk, her eyes drifting shut, waiting for a pull at her navel.

Nothing.

She hears some strange noise in the background, and her eyes snap open. She turns around and finds Malfoy and Theo red in the face, trying to contain their laughter.

"Ha ha ha. Very funny" she says dryly.

At this, Theo bends over and begins to shake so hard that she wonders if he's okay, but then a laugh so hard tears its way from his mouth that she has to bite her tongue to keep the string of swear words inside.

She turns her glare towards the blonde whose eyes are half their original size, nose scrunched up, and mouth crinkled at the corners as he, too, begins to laugh.

She tries very hard to contain herself, but the sound of Malfoy's laughter rings through her ears and warms her heart, and she's doubling over in laughter before she knows it.

"Granger," Theo pants. "Are you...are you laughing at yourself?"

Hermione sobers up a bit and straightens her back.

"I'm laughing because of you both. You laugh like donkeys" she huffs, her eyes watery.

" Good going, Granger" Malfoy smirks at her.

She rolls her eyes in response. "Let's get going"

"As you say, Madame," Theo snickers.

**Day Eight**

"Is it just me, or does this tree look like Granger's head?" Malfoy asks.

"It does actually" Theo says somewhat lightly.

Hermione pinches his arm, and walks towards the tree. It looks thicker and bushier than any other trees they'd come across in the forest. It looks old- almost ancient.

There are some carvings on the bark and she reaches out to touch them. The dents are smoothed out now, and she narrows her eyes as she comes across a familiar sign drawn up in red.

The Hogwarts Crest.

"This is it" she whispers.

" See? Even Granger thinks so" Malfoy drawls.

"Oh hush, Malfoy! This is the answer to our clue!" She yells excitedly.

"Granger, Granger, I can assure you that McGonagall doesn't love you enough to plant a tree like you just so we could identify it easily"

Hermione scowls at him. "Use your mouth for something good, Malfoy. Try it, it feels wonderful"

Theo snickers beside them both, and Hermione's cheeks flame as Malfoy smirks.

"Been fantasising about my mouth, have you?"

"Jump off your high horse, Malfoy. All I want to do with your mouth is to shove a sock in it. Now enough of your bullshit" she says and grabs his hand in hers, her cheeks blooming red. Her other hand grabs Theo's and she presses their palms onto the Hogwarts Crest.

A sinking feeling pools in her stomach when nothing happens, but then a tugging replaces it, and she mouths a _'yes'_ as they disappear.

**OooOooO**

The ground is tough and it seems to be moulding into her. She thinks she hears a thump, but then she feels it move, and then hears it grunt.

Her eyes snap open and then she's staring into the grey eyes of Draco Malfoy. She braces her hands on his chest to push herself up, and he winces.

"I'm not so heavy, Malfoy" she says before she can help herself.

"Granger," Theo calls out, his lips stretched into a smirk. "He's a man"

That's all he says, and it's enough because she understands- because it's pressing against her. Heat rises in her cheeks and neck and she tries her best not touch him there, but fate had other plans and she loses her balance and finds herself back on top of him.

" Fucking hell" Malfoy grunts out, and she doubts he's in any pain.

And suddenly, he rolls them over so he's on top of her. Her breath hitches in her throat, her eyes wide and mouth parted slightly. Malfoy licks his lips, and then he's standing up.

Theo lends her a hand, and she stands up.

"What the...?" She trails off, not knowing what to say. Because they are standing on a beach.

" My thoughts exactly" Theo says.

" Did the clue appear?" She asks.

An understanding passes between them, and they both turn their heads to look at the blond, who was indeed, busy reading the clue card all by himself.

" Malfoy!" She screeches.

" Granger" he mocks.

" We're supposed to be doing it together!" She snarls at him.

" Oh yeah? But it seems that I'm the only one who's intelligent enough."

"Oh shut up, Malfoy" she bites back.

" Who guessed the riddle?"

" I was a second away from guessing"

"-Me, that's right. And who found the tree? Again m-"

"Enough!" She yells, and snatches the clue from his hand.

I have to be broken down before I'm of use.

"Broken down?" Theo scowls as he pushes his head away from her shoulder.

Malfoy shrugs.

" Let's make a list of everything that breaks down" Hermione sits down on the sand, the waves crashing nearby, and folds her legs neatly underneath herself.

Malfoy and Theo just stare at her.

" What?"

"Are you fucking serious, Granger?" Malfoy asks incredulously.

" Of course I am" she scoffs.

"Granger, you do know that a million things can break, right?" Theo asks, his lips twitching at the corners.

"Yeah" she scowls, "But there aren't a million things here now, are there?"

"True, but I don't even see anything in here"

Hermione bites her lip, "There has to be something"

Theo huffs, and then his eyes light up.

"A heart!" He yells.

"What?" Malfoy scowls.

"Yeah, you know..when it breaks..you can use it properly?" He grimaces.

Hermione chuckles, "Oh Theo. Who broke your heart?"

Theo scoffs. "Nobody can break my heart, Granger. May be, we were meant to slay Malfoy to get his heart" his eyes glint.

" You mean Malfoy has had his heart broken?" Hermione asks lightly.

" He might, soon" Theo says seriously.

" Can you stop talking about me as if I'm not here?" Malfoy snarls.

Hermione ignores him, her mind going wild about what Theo had just said.

"it can't be a heart because we'd have to kill for it" she says.

" Newsflash, Granger, animals have hearts too"

"And newsflash, Malfoy, you just contradicted your own statement. Animals do have hearts and killing them would be vile"

" May be it's another tree?" Theo says.

Malfoy and Hermione look at him with questioning eyes.

" Yeah, like cutting down a tree to use the wood for making parchments...?" He says uncertainly.

Hermione bites her lip.

"I don't think so, because it says that it has to be...so it must be broken down before its of use, and trees are useful anyway"

Malfoy pushes his tongue into his cheek, his eyes studying her.

" True".

Wait, what?

"A seashell?" Theo suggests.

Hermione chuckles, "I think you're tired, Theo. Come and take a nap" she pats the sand beside her, making it fly towards Malfoy.

"Bloody hell, Granger" Malfoy hisses and rubs his eyes.

Hermione thinks he looks cute.

" Don't we have a blanket or something? " Theo asks, grimacing slightly at the thought of laying down on sand.

" It's not a picnic" Hermione scoffs.

Theo hums and then drops down beside her.

"Do you mind if I..?" He points towards her legs neatly folded, his gaze fixated on Malfoy.

"What?" She asks.

" Lay my head on your lap, Granger. I don't fancy spitting sand for the next two weeks"

" Er sure" she stretches her legs and pats them invitingly.

From her peripheral vision, she sees Malfoy scowl into the air.

" Can I place a cushioning charm on you?" Theo asks, smiling teasingly.

Hermione huffs," deal with my bones, Theo. And quick, before I change my mind"

Theo huffs a laugh and lays his head in her lap, his eyes landing on Malfoy and staying there until they drift shut.

**Day Nine**

Dragging their feet through the sand, Hermione comes to a sudden halt in front of a large rock.

Malfoy and Theo turn to look at her.

"What happened?" Theo asks.

"What if it's a seashell!?" Hermione almost yells as she looks behind her at the rolling waves.

"Seashell?" Malfoy scoffs.

" Yeah, Malfoy. Seashell. They have some uses after being opened."

"Exactly," he drawls. "Opened being the operational word here, Granger"

"I know it's a long shot, Malfoy! But what if the clue isn't as precise? Who knows, may be the Wizarding World breaks the seashells instead of opening them" she argues.

" If the clue isn't so precise, then a tree would be a more appropriate answer" Theo remarks.

Hermione huffs and throws her hands in the air in frustration. "Idiots" she mutters under her breath.

"Granger, Granger" Theo snickers.

Malfoy huffs out a breath, his eyes closing, as the wind ruffles his hair.


	5. Chapter 5

* * *

**Treasure Hunt**

**Chapter Five**

* * *

 

 

**Day Ten**

"What is this?" Hermione cries out in frustration.

Malfoy  _tsks_  behind her. "Tired already, Granger?" He drawls.

Hermione puffs out her cheeks and bites her tongue to control her temper.

"It's alright, Granger. We all have our days." Malfoy says, and she can  _hear_  the smirk in his voice.

"Sod off, Malfoy" she snarls, her nails digging into her palms.

" Losing our temper, are we?" Theo interrupts.

" Keep Malfoy away from me, Theo!" She sneers into the air.

"For how long are you planning to keep him away?" All humour was wiped clean from his voice.

Hermione turns her head and finds Malfoy glaring daggers and swords at Theo who was trying to tell Malfoy something using sign language.

The air feels thicker and Hermione feels the need to dissipate some of the tension, so she snorts.

Theo turns towards her, a bemused expression on his face.

"So mature, you are, oh Granger" he snickers.

Hermione gives him a lopsided grin and without a warning, drops on the sand and crosses her legs at her ankles.

"What the fuck, Granger?" Malfoy snarls.

Hermione glares at him for his foul language and then leans back on the sand, using her bag as a pillow.

"Granger" Malfoy hisses.

" _Malfoy_ " she mimics.

" What are you doing, Granger?" Theo asks as he sits down beside her.

Hermione looks at Malfoy, as if telling him ' _This is how humans ask, ferret',_  and then turns towards Theo.

"Look, we're going to have to work this clue out like adults-" she looks pointedly towards the blonde, and continues "-and now is the time. So sit down" she looks up at Malfoy again.

Theo chuckles beside her, and drapes an arm over her shoulders.

" You're so intelligent, Granger" he smirks at her.

Hermione shifts a bit. " So I've been told"

"Hah!" Malfoy rolls his eyes. " He was mocking you, thickhead"

" Yeah well, he can mock me all he likes, Malfoy. He's my friend" she sniffs.

She feels Theo stiffen beside her as Malfoy narrows his gaze at him.

"Friend" he spits out as if the word is offending and disgusting.

" Yes, friend, Malfoy. But you wouldn't know about them, now would you?" She sneers at him.

Theo's arm drops from her shoulders and he shifts away. Hermione looks at him with curious eyes, but he seems intent on not making eye contact with her.

Malfoy blinks, and then walks away.

" Shit" Theo swears. " You shouldn't have said that, Granger. What am I? A baffoon? I'm his friend, Granger.. _.His_  friend before yours" he says and gets up from his place, walking towards where the blond had disappeared.

Hermione's lips begin to quiver.

Swallowing the lump in her throat, Hermione, too, stood back up to follow her team mates.

**OooOooO**

"Malfoy" she says, her voice unreasonably soft.

He neither moves nor indicates that he has heard her.

"Look I-"

"Go to sleep, Granger" he's cuts her off, and looks towards his right where Theo was sleeping on a conjured blanket.

"Listen to me, Malfoy" she insists.

" Granger" he warns.

" Just... _Please_?" The plea is sincere.

Malfoy huffs and Hermione knows she has won.

" I didn't mean...I mean..It was wrong of me to say that.." she mumbles, all the while fidgeting with the sleeves of her jumper.

" That?" He finally turns to looks at her, his grey eyes shinning like molten silver in the moonlight.

Her breath hitches in her throat, her heart picking up pace. " I...what I said.."

" You say a lot of things, Granger. What are you apologising for?"

Hermione bites her lower lip, " Hey! I don't say hurtful things all the time!"

"Don't you?" He asks and she finds herself hit with a ton of different emotions.

_Do my words really hurt h-_

"Don't over think it, Granger. What's done is done. Go to sleep"

" I..but...I'm sorry"

A sudden something flashes across his eyes, but it's gone before she could assess what it was.

" Begging for my forgiveness, are you?" And the cockiness was back in his tone, the smirk returning to his lips.

Hermione finds herself smiling for no reason at all, her cheeks flaming under his heated gaze.

" Prat" she mutters and then catches his eyes.

The grey orbs shine with mirth, and she's mesmerised. She wants to remember him like this, so she takes her time, memorizing his face.

He cocks his head to one side.

"Goodnight, Granger" he says and covers a yawn with the back of his hand.

" Goodnight, Dr- Malfoy" she whispers before walking towards her spot.

**Day Eleven**

"So, you lovebirds made up after I slept?" Theo inquires.

Hermione pulls on the strap of her bag, tugging it closer.

"We didn't make up, Theo, and we're certainly not lovebirds" she grimaces.

Theo smirks at her. " Whatever you say, Granger, but everybody is entitled to their own opinions, aren't they?"

" Yes, they are" she nods.

" So...you both made up?" He asks again.

" Theo" Malfoy scowls.

" Drakie" Theo bats his eyelashes.

A laugh tears through Hermione's throat.

"What's so funny, Grangeyy?" Theo asks in that same false, sweet voice.

" That is so Pansy Parkinson! " She laughs again.

Theo, too, bursts out laughing, but Malfoy's face remains stoic and void of any emotion.

Hermione immediately sobers up, her lips returning to their original place.

_Of course. He's her boyfriend after all._

Swallowing the lump in her throat, she clears it. " Let's get going"

"Yeah" Theo pants. " By the way, Granger, that was Astoria Greengrass, not Pansy"

Hermione bites her lip and nods.

" Should I apologise again?" She whispers to Theo, motioning towards Malfoy who was behind them.

Theo raises a bemused brow at her.

"Why in Merlin's name would you apologise to him for something I did?"

Hermione blushes, " I mean...I kind of made fun of Pansy...what if he minded?"

Theo pretends to think for a moment.

"What I'm trying to understand here, Granger, is that why Draco would mind you making fun of Pans. unknowingly- that too? "

The wind ruffles her hair as she stops and turns to look at Theo.

"He's dating her, for Merlin's sake!"

And Theo doubles over in hysterical laughter, hands clutching

his stomach.

**Day Twelve**

Looking at both the handsome sleeping forms of her team mates, Hermione quietly makes her way towards the sea. Shrugging off her jumper, she shimmies out of her trousers and shivers as the cold envelops her.

Making sure the boys were still asleep, she reaches behind her back and snaps her bra open before sliding it off her shoulders and placing it on the sand. She keeps her knickers on and begins to walk towards the deep blue sea. Waves crash against the shore and hit her ankles.

Hermione shivers, holds her breath, and then runs into the water, diving in. The water splashes around her, falling around in tiny diamond like droplets. She gasps for breath as she comes up again, and looks towards where Malfoy and Theo were, thankfully, still fast asleep.

Swimming towards the shore, she reaches into her bag and grabs a soap bar and a bottle of shampoo.

She lathers her hair, washes her face, and then runs her palms down her throat to her breasts and then to her stomach, oblivious to the pair of silver eyes watching her from a distance.

**Day Thirteen**

"You look different, Granger" Malfoy remarks, his eyes roaming over her form.

Hermione crosses her arms over her chest, and raises her chin. " What do you mean, Malfoy?"

" Human...well, sort of...Cleaner" he smirks at her.

Hermione narrows her eyes suspiciously.

"Theo! " she calls out to the brown haired man walking in front of her.

"Granger!"

Placing her hands on her hips, she asks, "How do I look?"

His lips curve up into a smirk.

" Do you want me to answer honestly, or would you rather I sugarcoat? "

Hermione scowls at him, "Be honest, Theo"

Theo smirks, "Fine, you look like an over large sac of rice- you know the brown ones, right, Yeah those. And your hair...Salazar, forgive me for even calling it hair. It's a jungle, Granger- or better yet, a bird's nest. Actually, not even birds would surv-"

Hermione flips her bag and smacks him upside down on the head. " You. Idiot! I meant generally!" she practically yells at him and punctuates each word with a smack on his head.

" I was joking, Hermione!" he yells in defense.

Malfoy huffs out a laugh behind her, and she turns to look at him, her cheeks blooming red for an unknown reason.

"So, I look the same?" she turns to Theo once again.

" Of course you do! Why, you thought a week or two would have damaged your near non existent beauty?" he snickers.

Hermione shakes her head. " Thank you for the lovely compliments, Theo. You're too lovely for your own good."

She then turns towards Malfoy.

"Were you watching me, Malfoy?" she screeches.

Malfoy raises his hands in surrender.

" Me?"

"No, Lucius! Of course you, you prat!"

"I wasn't watching you, Granger"

"oh? But you were, Malfoy. If not then-"

"-I don't need to scar myself for life!"

"hah!" she yells triumphantly.

"How did you know what I was talking about, Malfoy, if you didn't see for yourself?"

Malfoy's expression is guarded.

" Woah! Easy there, Granger. I have no interest in watching you naked." and he has the guts to smirk at her.

Hermione stomps her foot, "You...you disgusting pervert! " she yells.

" Stop with that shrill voice of yours, Granger. You're scaring the damn birds." Theo says, lightly

"Shut up, Theo. And there are no birds here"

"Exactly" he says.

The boys high five each other and burst into laughter at an inside joke.

Hermione huffs and puffs before walking away, muttering something about gits and prats.

 


	6. Chapter Six

**Day** **Fourteen**

Eyelids fluttering, Hermione opens her eyes and blinks several times to adjust to the bright sunlight. Rolling onto her back, she turns towards her left and finds Theo sleeping with his mouth open and his legs tangled. A sort of laugh escapes her lips and she rolls her eyes.

Her smile disappears as she turns towards her right. Malfoy's face is inches away from her own. His pale skin even paler, his hair shining like silver and his expression of peace. He looks elegant, she thinks. Her eyes roam over his face as she memorises every curve and dip of his face.

Her heart is heavy in her chest, because this is the first time in two weeks that he has slept next to her. She feels  _protected_ as she looks at the two men lying beside her. A smile graces her lips and she sits upright. Folding up her blanket, she grabs a water bottle, her tooth brush and a tube of toothpaste, and walks towards rocks.

As she gargles and spits the water out of her mouth, she feels the warm sun kissing her skin, and she knows that something has changed.

Perhaps in her own heart...

* * *

 

"He's missing her," Malfoy says, pointing towards a dull looking Theo walking ahead of them.

"Who? Luna?" Hermione asks, her eyes narrowed due to curiosity.

Malfoy snorts," Yes, loony".

Hermione pinches his arm; hard. "She isn't loony!"

" Oh yeah? But I thought I heard that you introduced her to Potter as  _Loony Lovegood_?"

Her cheeks flame as she prepares herself to look at the smug face of Malfoy, but instead, she finds him smirking- a friendly smirk.

 _Yes,_ _something_   _has_ _definitely changed._

 _"_ Who told you that?" She asks.

" You wouldn't believe me" he smirks again.

Her eyes narrow. " Who was it?" She demands.

" Longbottom" he smirks again.

" Ha ha very funny," she says dryly.

Malfoy shrugs his shoulders in return.   
Hermione clears her throat and asks the only one thing on her mind.

" Don't you miss her?" Surprisingly, her voice doesn't waver.

Malfoy's brow hikes up as he asks,"who?"

"Parkinson," she says and looks ahead to avoid eye contact, her mouth dry.

Malfoy chuckles softly. A sound that warms her heart and kisses her soul.

Why were these feelings coming back?

He looks at her then, his neck tilted towards her.

" I do....I do miss her actually."

The words hurt her more than they should have, and she forces a smile onto her face as she calls out Theo's name.

 

**Day Fifteen**

"We've been walking for two freaking hours, Granger! Give it a rest before I faint," Theo yells.

"No," she pants. " I have a feeling we're close."

"Close to what, for fuck's sake?!"

"The answer to our clue."

"Oh mighty Granger. Pray tell what the answer to our clue is!"

She turns her head to glare at him and he glares right back her. They're both surprised to hear Malfoy chuckling, his eyes crinkling at the corners, and his lips stretching into the most delici-  _devilish_ smile.

" It's good to see that no one gets along with you, Granger" he smirks at her.

Hermione is even more surprised than him when she discovers the huge smile on her face.

Theo looks away awkwardly, his hands finding their way into the pockets of his pants.

Malfoy continues to look at her, the silver in his eyes shining extra bright. She finds her own eyes melting into the molten silver of his'. He swallows and his throat bobs up and down. Hermione's eyes travel from his eyes to his lips, and the spell is broken as a hen, out of nowhere, runs past them.

Theo yells out in triumph and takes off after the hen. Hermione and Malfoy look at each other, a knowing glint in both their eyes. Their lips stretch into matching grins as they, too, run after the hen.

After a series of hopping over fallen logs, and strings of curses, Theo finally catches the chicken. " You ugly beast, you fucking made me run miles after  _yo_ u?"

" Hey! Don't squeeze her, Theo. You'll hurt her," Hermione scolds.

Malfoy cranes his neck to look at her, an unreadable expression on his face.

" How do you know it's a she?" Theo asks and loosens his hold on the hen.

" Common sense, and also because she's carrying an egg."

" An egg? Really, Granger?"

"Yes, see- right there"

Hermione points towards the white shell peeking through red feathers.

Theo makes to grab it, but is instead pricked in the hand by the mother.

" Fuck," he swears and squeezes the hen's neck.

" Theo!" Hermione yells and carefully takes the hen away from him.

Placing her on the ground, she gently pets the hen on the head. Malfoy watches her with curious eyes and Theo constantly rolls his'.

The hen gently lowers the egg and places it on the ground, along with a few red feathers and Hermione's eyes widen.

This wasn't just any hen.

"She's a magical hen!" She exclaims.

" 10 points to Gryffindor", Malfoy drawls. "It lives in the Magical world, Granger, of course it's magical."

"She, Malfoy...  _she"_ she corrects him.

" May I keep this?" Hermione lifts up the egg with the feathers and asks the mother.

The hen nods it's approval and walks away, pricking Theo's leg on the way.

"What the actual fuck, Granger? Why did she walk away like a damn boss? Why did we let her go?" He pulls at his hair.

Hermione lifts up the egg, "Because she gave us the answer to our clue."

" An egg?" Malfoy asks.

" Yes!" Hermione grins.

" _I have to_ _be_ _broken down before I'm of use-_ that's right! It's an egg!" Theo yells, his face lighting up.

" Ready?" Hermione asks.

" Yes!" Theo yells as he grabs his bag, and when he reaches out to grab Hermione's bag from the ground, Malfoy grabs it first and tosses it over his shoulder. Theo smirks privately and stands up straight. " Let's go!"

The three of them prepare themselves, but nothing happens as they remove the feathers and touch the shell of the egg.

"Fuck!" Theo swears.

Malfoy frowns and grabs the egg from her. Cracking the shell, his frown deepens as a silver mist emerges from the egg and envelopes them all.

When they open their eyes again, they're in a town.

The buildings were an amazing jumble of different styles: rickety wooden shops, marble and brick houses, huge stone churches. The different colours of the houses remind Hermione of her toy room as she scrambles to her feet and dusts herself off.

"Where the hell are we?" Theo asks as he, too, stands up.

Malfoy looks confused, his eyes narrowed.

Hermione thinks about telling them, but then stops when she realises who they were. Part of the sacred twenty eight standing in a muggle town. Well done, McGonagall.

" Where's the clue?" She asks, and Malfoy's eyes narrow even more- this time, at her.

Theo picks up the fallen envelope from the ground and holds it out for her. She rips it open and begins to read.

 

> **_Has a tongue, but never talks. Has no legs, but sometimes walks._ **
> 
>  

" What would have a tongue and never talk, for fuck's sake? " Malfoy curses.

" Is that you, Drakie?" Theo teases.

Hermione laughs, the sound tickles Malfoy's ears and he turns around to face her.

She sobers up immediately, her mouth pressed into a thin line.

Theo yelps and turns around. " What the fuck is that?" He asks, pointing towards a donkey far away.

Hermione looks confusedly at the poor animal. " It's a donkey, Theo".

" What?" Theo straight out yells.

Malfoy is staring at her too.

"A donkey," she confirms with a nod of her head.

" Shove it, Granger. We all know donkeys are fictional animals, " Malfoy drawls.

" What? No, donkeys are real." She fires back, now genuinely confused.

" No, they cannot be real!" Theo screeches.

" Why are you yelling, Theo?" She yells back.

" Because I've freaking wanted a donkey since I was seven and my parents always said that donkeys didn't exist and now it's fucking standing in front of me!" He yells again.

" But donkeys are real. It's right in front of you" She argues.

" Have you ever seen a donkey in the Wizarding World?- apart from weaselbee, that is" Malfoy interjects.

Hermione roles her eyes at his silly attempt at humour and ponders upon his question.

"No, I haven't. "

Realisation dawns on Malfoy's face.

"This is the muggle world," he exhales.

Theo's eyes, that were fixated on the donkey, now widen.

" Muggle world?" He repeats.

Hermione swallows.

" Yes, this is a muggle town," she says, thanking God when her voice remains stable.

She really didn't want them to freak out and go back to the prejudiced gits that they were.

"Then where the fuck are the muggles?" Theo asks.

Hermione raises her wrist and takes a look at her watch. It was 2 in the morning, and here they were, screaming like banshees.

"It's 2 am, Theo. They're all probably asleep"

" You knew," Malfoy accuses.

Hermione looks at him then, her eyebrows rising in a silent question.

"You knew we were sent to a muggle town as soon as you opened your eyes," his eyes narrow, the silver glinting brighter than it ever has- at least that's what she thinks.

" Of course I knew," she feigns nonchalance, waving her hand dismissively.

" Then why didn't you tell Theo when he asked you where we were?"

Damn you, Malfoy.

Hermione takes a deep breath, preparing to fire a lie, but Malfoy interrupts her," Don't fucking lie to me, Granger"

And she's suddenly scared. Was she that readable?

" Look, I just didn't want you to freak out" She explains.

And his question throws her off as he asks," _me_ or us?" He points towards Theo.

"Mainly you" She leans away from him.

His jaw clenches and he looks away.

She feels bad then, her eyes dropping to the floor.

Theo is still staring at the donkey with wonder in his eyes.

 

**Day** **Sixteen**

Rolling onto her side, Hermione covers a yawn as she tries to open her eyes. They had fallen asleep on the pavement, in their conjured sleeping bags. Blinking away the sleep, she finally opens her eyes and stifles a gasp as she sits upright.

All sorts of types of people are standing around them, shielding them from the morning sun. She chances a glance towards the boys, and thankfully, they're asleep.

"Are you alright, dears?" An old woman steps up from the crowd, her face kind.

Hermione rubs her eyes. " Er...we got lost."

The old woman smiles at her and motions a boy forward.

He's tall and slim, she notices, as he steps into view. His skin is soft beige, kissed by the sun. His shoulders are broad, his hair brown and messy. His cheekbones are sharp and defined, his chin pointy. He's handsome.

"Please take them to the guesthouse, Xavier" the old woman says.

 _Xavier_ smiles at her and she finds herself smiling back.

Just then, "AHHHHH!!" Theo yells. "Muggles. Fucking muggles and so many of them. Drake they're going to kill us!" He begins to shake Malfoy who sits upright and pulls out his wand, pointing it at the crowd.

" Theo, Malfoy!" She warns.

They both turn their eyes on her, both promising painful revenge.

" Oh dearie, what's that? A piece of wood?" A man says with a laugh.

"I'll fucking-" Theo begins but Hermione cuts him off. " Theo!"

" Granger" Malfoy hisses.

" Please show us the guesthouse, Xavier" she requests the confused boy.

He nods. " follow me," he says.

Hermione glares at Malfoy and Theo, silently assuring them that she knew what she was doing.

The three of them follow the handsome lad and walk into a tiny house. The dust almost chokes Hermione as she inhales deeply, expecting it to smell like home.

" We'll take it from here, thank you" she says.

Xavier nods and leaves the house, clicking the door shut.

"What the fuck was that? Would you mind explaining it to us?"

She sighs as she drops down on the couch. " Listen, I woke up to that crowd. I did not, by any means, invite them to look at the sleeping trio. We were sleeping on the pavement for God's sake! They were meant to come and check on us."

" Fucking weird tosser" Malfoy grumbles.

" Excuse me?" She asks incredulously.   
" They just helped us and you're cursing them?"

"We didn't fucking ask for their help!" He replies hotly.

" Oh really? Newsflash, Malfoy, these muggles have more feelings than you'll ever do. At least they didn't kill us like you would have, had they stumbled upon your mighty manor."

Malfoy's face turns red from rage.

" Now you're taking it too far, Granger" Theo interrupts.

" I'm taking it far? Look at the gall of him to speak shit about them just because they're muggles!"

"You fucking shut your mouth right now, Granger" Malfoy hisses

"And what if I dont? Because I'm done with your Pureblood crap!"

" Pureblood?" He snarls.

" Granger," Theo warns.

"Why don't you get it, Malfoy? We're all the same! They just don't have magic, but they do have souls! "

"Get out of my face, Granger," he sneers at her.

" No, I will not, " she sniffs. "At least not till you admit that you're wrong."

"I didn't say shit to you. I didn't even mention blood. You brought it up"

"Yes, because you were being rude to Xavier- and that too just because he's a muggle!"

" Fucking  _Xavie_ _r_ " he snarls, grabs his bag and walks towards the room, farthest from where she standing.

"You took it too far, Granger, " Theo sighs. 

Hermione snorts in response and opens her mouth to speak, but Theo cuts her off.

"No- don't speak. Try to understand, Granger. We're not used to waking up to a crowd of people dressed in weird clothes and staring down at us. We freaked out! That's it!" He explains. "It's not about their blood, Granger. It's not about anyone's blood anymore. Haven't you figured that out after living with us for two weeks?" He runs a hand through his hair.

Hermione is struck speechless. "Then.....then why did  _he_ react so rudely towards Xavier?"

Theo opens his mouth to speak, but then shuts it tight, pressing his lips into a thin line.

"That's for you to figure out, Granger," he says before he leaves her alone with her thoughts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I freaking love Theo! Please comment! xx

**Author's Note:**

> Please comment to let me know your thoughts about this chapter x


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